Size-controllable APTS stabilized ruthenium(0)nanoparticlescatalyst for the dehydrogenation of dimethylamine–borane at room temperature

Abstract

Dimethylamine–borane, (CH₃)₂NHBH₃, has been considered as one of the attractive materials for the efficient storage of hydrogen, which is still one of the key issues in the “Hydrogen Economy”. In a recent communication we have reported the synthesis and characterization of 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane stabilized ruthenium(0) nanoparticles with the preliminary results for their catalytic performance in the dehydrogenation of dimethylamine–borane at room temperature. Herein, we report a complete work including (i) effect of initial [APTS]/[Ru] molar ratio on both the size and the catalytic activity of ruthenium(0) nanoparticles, (ii) collection of extensive kinetic data under non-MTL conditions depending on the substrate and catalyst concentrations to define the rate law of Ru(0)/APTS-catalyzed dehydrogenation of dimethylamine–borane at room temperature, (iii) determination of activation parameters (E_a, ΔH^# and ΔS^#) for Ru(0)/APTS-catalyzed dehydrogenation of dimethylamine–borane; (iv) demonstration of the catalytic lifetime of Ru(0)/APTS nanoparticles in the dehydrogenation of dimethylamine–borane at room temperature, (v) testing the bottlability and reusability of Ru(0)/APTS nanocatalyst in the room-temperature dehydrogenation of dimethylamine–borane, (vi) quantitative carbon disulfide (CS₂) poisoning experiments to find a corrected TTO and TOF values on a per-active-ruthenium-atom basis, (vii) a summary of extensive literature review for the catalysts tested in the catalytic dehydrogenation of dimethylamine–borane as part of the results and discussions.