UTSA and Southwest Research Institute will create high surface area carbon microstructure particles that can chemically absorb hydrogen, storing it for safe and cost-effective transport.
AUGUST 1, 2022 — UTSA and Southwest Research Institute are collaborating to improve storage materials for hydrogen fuels with a hybrid metal-carbon microstructure that combines both chemical and physical hydrogen storage mechanisms.
The project is supported by a $125,000 grant from the Connecting through Research Partnerships (Connect) Program and will be led by Josh Mangum of SwRI’s Mechanical Engineering Division, UTSA Associate Professor of Physics and Astronomy Kathryn Mayer and UTSA Assistant Professor of Chemistry Fang Xu.
Hydrogen fuel is an attractive alternative to fossil fuels because its emissions are free from carbon byproducts. SwRI is leading several multidisciplinary efforts evaluating hydrogen as a potential fuel for automobiles, power generation and even as a replacement for natural gas in homes.
“While hydrogen energy is very promising, several hurdles must be overcome,” Mangum said. “Some of the chief challenges are transportation and storage.”
Current methods of transporting and storing hydrogen involve compressing and liquifying hydrogen gas for transport and storage in cryogenic and high-pressure fuel tanks, which is an expensive process. Because hydrogen is highly flammable, transporting these tanks is inherently dangerous.
To address these challenges, SwRI and UTSA will create high surface area carbon (HiSAC) microstructure particles that can physically and chemically absorb the hydrogen, allowing it to be transported safely and cost-effectively.
“Instead of a highly pressurized tank, we plan to store hydrogen in a low-cost powder material,” Mangum explained. “The hydrogen will be chemically and physically absorbed and desorbed. One of our project goals is evaluating how much hydrogen can be stored in the powder since this will dictate the overall storage cost.”
The researchers will fabricate the HiSAC microstructures using the SwRI-developed High Power Impulse Plasma Source (HiPIPS) technology, which efficiently generates coatings using high-density, high-flux plasmas at low temperatures and atmospheric pressures. R&D Magazine recognized SwRI’s HiPIPS technology as one of the 100 most significant innovations of 2017.
UTSA will perform the analytical characterization of the microparticle structures. Mayer’s research team will perform a detailed structural characterization of the materials using state-of-the-art instrumentation in the Kleberg Advanced Microscopy Center. Xu’s team will modify HiSAC by Mg deposition and test the materials’ hydrogen storage capacity using a customized unit.
“Previous research has demonstrated HSAC microstructures at high temperatures and low pressures, but HiPIPS allows us to form these materials at room temperature in a simple, scalable process,” Mangum said. “This process uses less energy than it takes to power an incandescent light bulb.”
SwRI’s Executive Office and UTSA’s Office of the Vice President for Research, Economic Development, and Knowledge Enterprise sponsor the Connect program, which offers grant opportunities to enhance greater scientific collaboration between the two institutions.
UTSA Today is produced by University Communications and Marketing, the official news source of The University of Texas at San Antonio. Send your feedback to news@utsa.edu. Keep up-to-date on UTSA news by visiting UTSA Today. Connect with UTSA online at Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Instagram.
Perfect for faculty and grad students who are ready to take their research to the next level, this workshop will guide you through the basics of the I-Corps program. Learn how I-Corps can teach you entrepreneurial skills to translate your research to commercialization, how you can get funding to discover customers for your technology, and how I-Corps can help you find the value proposition that will get your technology to sell. Lunch is included.
TBDLearn how to maximize the benefits of ORCID, how it can help you save time, and how to set up automatic updates to keep your ORCID record current.
Virtual Event (Zoom)In this hands-on workshop, participants will learn to setup an EndNote library, save references and PDFs, and automatically create and edit a bibliography. Attendees are encouraged, but not required, to have EndNote already installed on a personal computer.
Virtual Event (Zoom)Pressbooks Basic workshop attendees will be able to: create a new book, clone an existing book, remix chapters from a variety of different Creative Commons licensed books, add media and other content to a book, export a book in a wide range of formats.
Virtual (Zoom)This workshop will guide you how to leverage Overleaf program to effectively manage citations in your research papers.
Virtual Event (Zoom)This event, hosted by Rackspace Government Solutions, promises to be an insightful and engaging opportunity to explore the ethical, practical and transformative applications of AI technology in educational and public institutions.
University Room (BB 2.06.06,) Business Building, Main CampusThis workshop is a basic technical introduction to Python aimed at non-technical audiences with no prior knowledge of programming.
Group Spot B, John Peace LibraryThe University of Texas at San Antonio is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through research and discovery, teaching and learning, community engagement and public service. As an institution of access and excellence, UTSA embraces multicultural traditions and serves as a center for intellectual and creative resources as well as a catalyst for socioeconomic development and the commercialization of intellectual property - for Texas, the nation and the world.
To be a premier public research university, providing access to educational excellence and preparing citizen leaders for the global environment.
We encourage an environment of dialogue and discovery, where integrity, excellence, inclusiveness, respect, collaboration and innovation are fostered.
UTSA is a proud Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) as designated by the U.S. Department of Education .
The University of Texas at San Antonio, a Hispanic Serving Institution situated in a global city that has been a crossroads of peoples and cultures for centuries, values diversity and inclusion in all aspects of university life. As an institution expressly founded to advance the education of Mexican Americans and other underserved communities, our university is committed to promoting access for all. UTSA, a premier public research university, fosters academic excellence through a community of dialogue, discovery and innovation that embraces the uniqueness of each voice.