Hydrogen generation from hydrolysis of sodium borohydride with a novel palladium metal complex catalyst

•Pd supported salicylaldimine derivatives complex catalysts were prepared.•The catalysts was tested for hydrogen generation from hydrolysis of NaBH4.•NaBH4, NaOH, temperature and catalyst amount effects was investigated.•The catalysts was characterized via XRD, FT-IR and SEM techniques.

Generally, the complex catalyst is considered homogeneous catalyst, which is coordinated some ligands. In this study, we have treated a solid–state complex catalyst for NaBH4 hydrolysis. We report the synthesis of salicylaldimine ligand and its Pd metal complex. The obtained Pd catalyst is tested for hydrogen generation from the hydrolysis of NaBH4. The effects of temperature, NaBH4 concentration, NaOH concentration and catalyst amount on the catalytic activity toward hydrogen production from hydrolysis of NaBH4 are comparatively investigated. The Pd-containing catalyst is characterized by various techniques, including X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR).