Impact of H.I. Schlesinger's discoveries upon the course of modern chemistry on B−(N−)H hydrogen carriers

Representatives of B−(N−)H hydrogen carriers are alkali borohydrides (e.g. LiBH4 and NaBH4) and amine boranes (e.g. NH3BH3 and NaNH2BH3). These are old compounds; they were discovered in the first half of the 20th century. One of the main contributors to their development is Prof. Hermann I. Schlesinger (1882-1960). In the recent years, there has been new interest in these old compounds as novel chemical H storage materials. Sodium borohydride NaBH4 is a typical example. It was discovered by Schlesinger and collaborators in the 1950s. At that time it was found to be an attractive H2 generator; owing to this property it reemerged in the early 2000s for on-board H2 generation. Today, Schlesinger is commonly considered as the pioneer of NaBH4 as hydrogen carrier but the impact of Schlesinger and collaborators' discoveries upon the course of modern chemistry on B−(N−)H hydrogen carriers is far more extensive … This is highlighted herein.