Mechanism for high hydrogen storage capacity on metal-coated carbon nanotubes: A first principle analysis

The hydrogen adsorption and binding mechanism on metals (Ca, Sc, Ti and V) decorated single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) are investigated using first principle calculations. Our results show that those metals coated on SWCNTs can uptake over 8 wt% hydrogen molecules with binding energy range −0.2–−0.6 eV, promising potential high density hydrogen storage material. The binding mechanism is originated from the electrostatic Coulomb attraction, which is induced by the electric field due to the charge transfer from metal 4s to 3d. Moreover, we found that the interaction between the H2–H2 further lowers the binding energy.