María Batuecas

Amine-boranes (AB, RH₂N·BH₂R’) is a lightweight material, stable in the solid state at ambient temperature containing a high hydrogen (H₂) storage capacity. This hydrogen can be readily liberated for use in fuel-cell to produce energy in a clean and sustainable manner. However, its full potential as a viable H₂ storage material has not been demonstrated yet. This is due to the absence of a straightforward, efficient method for regenerating AB (charged fuel) from dehydrogenated polymeric (e.g. borazines) spent fuel. In this proposal, we aim to develop a method to regenerate AB from borazine. Reactivity of borazine will be enhanced by p-coordination to well rationalized metal fragments. Careful design of metal fragments will allow us to attempt different strategies, such as Metal-Ligand cooperation and Frustrated Lewis Pairs reactivity, to successfully achieve direct hydrogenation of borazines. A detailed mechanistic study, including computational and experimental approaches will shed light on this essential route to accomplish efficient and atom-economical process to regenerate charged fuel.