A rechargeable hydrogen battery based on Ru catalysis.

Apart from energy generation, the storage and liberation of energy are among the major problems in establishing a sustainable energy supply chain. Herein we report the development of a rechargeable H2 battery which is based on the principle of the Ru-catalyzed hydrogenation of CO2 to formic acid (charging process) and the Ru-catalyzed decomposition of formic acid to CO2 and H2 (discharging process). Both processes are driven by the same catalyst at elevated temperature either under pressure (charging process) or pressure-free conditions (discharging process). Up to five charging-discharging cycles were performed without decrease of storage capacity. The resulting CO2/H2 mixture is free of CO and can be employed directly in fuel-cell technology.