Investigation of hydrogen absorption in Li7VN4 and Li7MnN4.

The hydrogen storage properties of Li(7)VN(4) and Li(7)MnN(4) were investigated both by experiment and by density functional theory calculations. Li(7)VN(4) did not sorb hydrogen under our experimental conditions. Li(7)MnN(4) was observed to sorb 7 hydrogen atoms through the formation of LiH, Mn(4)N, and ammonia gas. An applied pressurized mixture of H(2)/Ar and H(2)/N(2) gases was helpful to mitigate the release of NH(3) but could not prevent its formation. The introduction of N(2) also caused weight gain of the sample by re-nitriding the absorbed products LiH and Mn(4)N, which correlated with the presence of Li(2)NH, LiNH(2), and Mn(2)N detected by X-ray diffraction. While our observed results for Li(7)VN(4) and Li(7)MnN(4) differ in detail, they are in overall qualitative agreement with our theoretical work, which strongly suggests that both compounds are unlikely to form quaternary hydrides. © The Owner Societies 2011