Rh nanoparticles supported on graphene as efficient catalyst for hydrolytic dehydrogenation of amine boranes for chemical hydrogen storage

•One-step synthesis of graphene supported Rh NPs.•The catalysts exhibit excellent catalytic activity.•The catalysts show good durable stability.

Well dispersed 2.4 nm Rh nanoparticles (NPs) supported on graphene have been synthesized via a one-step in situ procedure by using methylamine borane (MeAB) as the reducing agent. Compared with other conventional supports, such as carbon black, SiO2, γ-Al2O3, and the physical mixture of Rh and graphene, the as-prepared Rh NPs supported on graphene exhibit superior catalytic activity towards the hydrolysis of ammonia borane. Kinetic studies of catalytic hydrolysis of amine boranes indicate that the as-synthesized Rh/graphene is first order with respect to Rh concentration. Among all the reported Rh-based catalysts, the Rh/graphene exhibits the highest turnover frequency (TOF) values of 325 and 146 min−1, the lowest activation energy (Ea) values of 19.7 and 16.4 kJ/mol, toward hydrolysis of ammonia borane (AB) and MeAB, respectively.