Ultrasound-assisted synthesis of nano-structured zirconium hydride at room temperature

• Sonochemical method was used to synthesize nano-ZrH2, for the first time.
• H/M ratio of the synthesized nano-ZrH2 is obtained about 2 (analyzed by ERD).
• The temperature of hydrogen desorption of nano-ZrH2 is 303 °C (very less than that of conventional methods, 600 °C).
• Sonochemical method was found appropriate and reliable method for synthesis for nano-ZrH2.

In this study, sonochemical method was used to synthesize nano-structured zirconium hydride (nano-ZrH2) from the zirconium chloride aqueous solution. Formation of nano-ZrH2 with average size about 6.5 nm was confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), elastic recoil detection (ERD) analyses, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis revealed that hydrogen desorption was occurred at 303 °C, which is very less than that of the ZrH2 synthesized by conventional methods (about 600 °C). The results show that the sonochemical method is very appropriate for synthesis of nano-structured metal hydrides (NMHs) with unique properties which can be very helpful for the study of size reduction effects on the various properties of metal hydrides.