Interaction of hydrogen with an Mg-Al alloy

The interaction of hydrogen with an Mg-Al alloy pre-exposed to air have been studied with in situ time resolved X-ray powder diffraction. Phase fractions as a function of time are derived from series of consecutive diffraction patterns allowing kinetic analysis. The apparent activation energy for dehydrogenation of the Mg-Al alloy is found to be 160 kJ/mol. This is not significantly higher than for pure and fully activated Mg. It is suggested that the addition of Al improves the resistance towards oxygen contamination.