Novel Ammonia-Based Energy Storage Technology

Increasing environmental and political restrictions mean that there is a requirement for clean burning fuels in order to cut carbon dioxide emissions. Hydrogen has been identified as a key target fuel as the only product of its combustion is water, however storage and transport of hydrogen gas pose significant problems. Ammonia and formic acid are both known hydrogen carriers however their unfavourable chemical properties, prohibits their use as possible fuels. Combining these two chemicals to make a salt (ammonium formate) however offers exciting but to date uninvestigated possible solutions. Ammonium formate is a stable colourless crystalline solid (mp 120 C). It is readily soluble in cold water and is non-hazardous for transport by air, sea and road freight, and is an ideal hydrogen carrier fuel provided catalysts can be developed to promote the decomposition to hydrogen or water in reactor systems. Whilst emission of carbon dioxide upon decomposition of ammonium formate is environmentally unfavourable, the entire process is carbon neutral as atmospheric carbon dioxide is fixed during the industrial preparation of formic acid and would be released upon decomposition.