Hydrogen adsorption on graphene foam synthesized by combustion of sodium ethoxide

•Graphene foam was prepared by combustion of sodium ethoxide.•Large volumes of material (multi-gram scale) were prepared by this simple method.•The surface area is large (1270 m2/g), maximizing the available area for adsorption.•A hydrogen sorption capacity of 2.1 wt% was recorded at 1 MPa, and 77 K.•This compares with 1.2 wt% for a commercial graphene reference sample.

Hydrogen storage is a crucial technology for the realization of a carbon-neutral society. However, few materials have been able to approach useful hydrogen storage capacity at reasonable temperatures and pressures. Graphene has an extremely high surface-area-to-weight ratio, is strong, cheap, chemically inert, and environmentally benign. As such it may be an ideal substrate for hydrogen storage. Here we present synthesis of graphene foam by combustion of sodium ethoxide. This technique is low-cost, scalable, and results in a three-dimensional graphene network with a surface area of more than 1200 m2/g. It is applied as a hydrogen storage material at liquid nitrogen temperature, with a capacity of 2.1 wt%.