A Comparative Density Functional Theory Study of Hydrogen Storage in Cellulose and Chitosan Functionalized by Transition Metals (Ti, Mg, and Nb)

The focus of this work is hydrogen storage in pristine cellulose, chitosan, and cellulose. Chitosan doped with magnesium, titanium, and niobium is analyzed using spin unrestricted plane-wave density functional theory implemented in the Dmol<sup>3</sup> module. The results of this study d...

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Main Authors: Omar Faye, Jerzy A. Szpunar, Ubong Eduok
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-10-01
Series:Materials
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/15/21/7573
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author Omar Faye
Jerzy A. Szpunar
Ubong Eduok
author_facet Omar Faye
Jerzy A. Szpunar
Ubong Eduok
author_sort Omar Faye
collection DOAJ
description The focus of this work is hydrogen storage in pristine cellulose, chitosan, and cellulose. Chitosan doped with magnesium, titanium, and niobium is analyzed using spin unrestricted plane-wave density functional theory implemented in the Dmol<sup>3</sup> module. The results of this study demonstrate that hydrogen interaction with pure cellulose and chitosan occurred in the gas phase, with an adsorption energy of <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>E</mi><mi>b</mi></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> = 0.095 eV and 0.090 eV for cellulose and chitosan, respectively. Additionally, their chemical stability was determined as <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>E</mi><mi>b</mi></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>= 4.63 eV and <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>E</mi><mi>b</mi></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> = 4.720 eV for pure cellulose and chitosan, respectively, by evaluating their band gap. Furthermore, the presence of magnesium, titanium, and niobium on cellulose and chitosan implied the transfer of an electron from metal to cellulose and chitosan. Moreover, our calculations predict that cellulose doped with niobium is the most favorable medium where 6H<sub>2</sub> molecules are stored compared with molecules stored in niobium-doped chitosan with T<sub>max</sub> = 818 K to release all H<sub>2</sub> molecules. Furthermore, our findings showed that titanium-doped cellulose has a storage capacity of five H<sub>2</sub> molecules, compared to a storage capacity of four H<sub>2</sub> molecules in titanium-doped chitosan. However, magnesium-doped cellulose and chitosan have insufficient hydrogen storage capacity, with only two H<sub>2</sub> molecules physisorbed in the gas phase. These results suggest that niobium-doped cellulose and chitosan may play a crucial role in the search for efficient and inexpensive hydrogen storage media.
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spelling doaj.art-4f725af5d40f48f78058cdcd2a5d10872023-11-24T05:37:22ZengMDPI AGMaterials1996-19442022-10-011521757310.3390/ma15217573A Comparative Density Functional Theory Study of Hydrogen Storage in Cellulose and Chitosan Functionalized by Transition Metals (Ti, Mg, and Nb)Omar Faye0Jerzy A. Szpunar1Ubong Eduok2Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Saskatchewan, 57 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5A9, CanadaDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Saskatchewan, 57 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5A9, CanadaDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Saskatchewan, 57 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5A9, CanadaThe focus of this work is hydrogen storage in pristine cellulose, chitosan, and cellulose. Chitosan doped with magnesium, titanium, and niobium is analyzed using spin unrestricted plane-wave density functional theory implemented in the Dmol<sup>3</sup> module. The results of this study demonstrate that hydrogen interaction with pure cellulose and chitosan occurred in the gas phase, with an adsorption energy of <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>E</mi><mi>b</mi></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> = 0.095 eV and 0.090 eV for cellulose and chitosan, respectively. Additionally, their chemical stability was determined as <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>E</mi><mi>b</mi></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula>= 4.63 eV and <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><msub><mi>E</mi><mi>b</mi></msub></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> = 4.720 eV for pure cellulose and chitosan, respectively, by evaluating their band gap. Furthermore, the presence of magnesium, titanium, and niobium on cellulose and chitosan implied the transfer of an electron from metal to cellulose and chitosan. Moreover, our calculations predict that cellulose doped with niobium is the most favorable medium where 6H<sub>2</sub> molecules are stored compared with molecules stored in niobium-doped chitosan with T<sub>max</sub> = 818 K to release all H<sub>2</sub> molecules. Furthermore, our findings showed that titanium-doped cellulose has a storage capacity of five H<sub>2</sub> molecules, compared to a storage capacity of four H<sub>2</sub> molecules in titanium-doped chitosan. However, magnesium-doped cellulose and chitosan have insufficient hydrogen storage capacity, with only two H<sub>2</sub> molecules physisorbed in the gas phase. These results suggest that niobium-doped cellulose and chitosan may play a crucial role in the search for efficient and inexpensive hydrogen storage media.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/15/21/7573cellulosechitosanhydrogen storagemagnesiumtitaniumniobium
spellingShingle Omar Faye
Jerzy A. Szpunar
Ubong Eduok
A Comparative Density Functional Theory Study of Hydrogen Storage in Cellulose and Chitosan Functionalized by Transition Metals (Ti, Mg, and Nb)
Materials
cellulose
chitosan
hydrogen storage
magnesium
titanium
niobium
title A Comparative Density Functional Theory Study of Hydrogen Storage in Cellulose and Chitosan Functionalized by Transition Metals (Ti, Mg, and Nb)
title_full A Comparative Density Functional Theory Study of Hydrogen Storage in Cellulose and Chitosan Functionalized by Transition Metals (Ti, Mg, and Nb)
title_fullStr A Comparative Density Functional Theory Study of Hydrogen Storage in Cellulose and Chitosan Functionalized by Transition Metals (Ti, Mg, and Nb)
title_full_unstemmed A Comparative Density Functional Theory Study of Hydrogen Storage in Cellulose and Chitosan Functionalized by Transition Metals (Ti, Mg, and Nb)
title_short A Comparative Density Functional Theory Study of Hydrogen Storage in Cellulose and Chitosan Functionalized by Transition Metals (Ti, Mg, and Nb)
title_sort comparative density functional theory study of hydrogen storage in cellulose and chitosan functionalized by transition metals ti mg and nb
topic cellulose
chitosan
hydrogen storage
magnesium
titanium
niobium
url https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/15/21/7573
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