Metal Hydrides focuses on the theories of hydride formation as well as on experimental procedures involved in the formation of hydrides, the reactions that occur between hydrides and other media, and the physical and mechanical properties of the several classes of hydrides. The use of metal hydrides in the control of neutron energies is discussed, as are many other immediate or potential uses, e.g., in the production of high-purity hydrogen and in powder metallurgy. It is hoped that this book will serve as a valuable reference to students, research professors, and industrial researchers in metal hydrides and in allied fields. Selected chapters may serve specialists in other fields as an introduction to metal hydrides. The information contained herein will also be of lasting and practical value to the metallurgist, inorganic chemist, solid-state physicist, nuclear engineer, and others working with chemical or physical processes involving metal-hydrogen systems.

This book has been conceived to collect the most important recent advances in all areas of hydride chemistry research, including chemical reactivity, instrumental investigation, theory, and applications in the areas of catalysis, biochemistry and materials science. Many of the chapters have been written by the plenary lecturers of the EURO-Hydrides 2000 conference, but other leading scientists in this field have also been invited to contribute. The first part of the book focuses on the chemistry and catalysis of transition metal hydrides. Another block of chapters illustrates the most recent advances in the application of instrumental techniques to the study of the properties and reactivity of hydride compounds. The final part of the book illustrates the relevance of metal-hydrogen bonds in biochemistry and materials science. All of the chapters of this book have been evaluated by independent reviewers.

Hydrides: Types, Bonds and Applications first proposes metal hydrides as a fascinating class of compounds due to the small mass and size of hydrogen. Its medium electronegativity causes a large flexibility in terms of metal-ligand interactions, resulting in a vast variety of possible compositions, chemical bonding, crystal structures and physical properties. However, numerous unsolved problems remain on our way towards a sustainable, carbon free energy system based on renewable energy and on hydrogen as a future energy carrier. Thus, the authors present the structural details of alkali, alkali earth based selected tetra-boro hydrides. Selected hydrides have recently been suggested for applications in optoelectronics and as solid electrolytes for battery applications. Their use in optoelectronic devices depends on their stability with respect to doping, solubility of shallow donors and acceptors, electrical and optical properties. The authors describe the nature of the bonding in hydrides, and show how these affect the properties of these materials, focussing on application in the energy storage and in the transportation sector. Next, the features of gas discharge and plasma sources based on Penning trap with metal hydride cathodes are presented. In such devices, metal hydrides fulfill the functions of both a cathode and the solid-state generator of working gas. The authors determine that hydrogen desorbed from metal hydride significantly changes the properties of the discharge. This is expressed, for example, in the fact that the plasma source based on Penning trap with metal hydride cathode appears to generate current-compensated ion beams with the ability to control the energy of the extracted ions. Lastly, the book discusses metal hydrides obtaining in sintered electrodes of nickel-cadmium batteries with electrochemical methods by the way of electrolyte decomposition onto hydrogen and oxygen. It was shown that as a result of electrolyte decomposition, oxygen releases from batteries, while hydrogen partly releases and is partly (in virtue of its high diffusion permeability) accumulated in sintered matrices of electrodes of nickel-cadmium batteries in the metal hydrides form.

Inorganic Hydrides focuses on the hydrides of chemical elements. The hydrides discussed in this book are classified into four principal categories — ionic, covalent, transition metal hydrides, and metallic hydrides. Hydrides that do not fit into general classification, such as hydrides of copper and zinc, can be described as borderline hydrides and form a transition in type between the covalent hydrides of the later elements of the periodic table and the metallic hydrides of the transition elements. This text begins with an introduction to the classes of hydrides and hydrides of hydrogen, discussing element by element through frequent comparisons. The transition metal hydrides and metallic hydrides are also elaborated. This selection concludes with the chapter on bonding and bond strengths in hydrides, followed by the applications of infrared, Raman, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The general chemistry of water and its solvent properties are also briefly deliberated. This publication is suitable for undergraduates, particularly on covering the developments and chemistry of inorganic hydrides.

By drawing together the current theoretical and experimental understanding of the phenomena of delayed hydride cracking (DHC) in zirconium alloys, The Effect of Hydrogen and Hydrides on the Integrity of Zirconium Alloy Components: Delayed Hydride Cracking provides a detailed explanation focusing on the properties of hydrogen and hydrides in these alloys. Whilst the emphasis lies on zirconium alloys, the combination of both the empirical and mechanistic approaches creates a solid understanding that can also be applied to other hydride forming metals. This up-to-date reference focuses on documented research surrounding DHC, including current methodologies for design and assessment of the results of periodic in-service inspections of pressure tubes in nuclear reactors. Emphasis is placed on showing how our understanding of DHC is supported by progress in general understanding of such broad fields as the study of hysteresis associated with first order phase transformations, phase relationships in coherent crystalline metallic solids, the physics of point and line defects, diffusion of substitutional and interstitial atoms in crystalline solids, and continuum fracture and solid mechanics. Furthermore, an account of current methodologies is given illustrating how such understanding of hydrogen, hydrides and DHC in zirconium alloys underpins these methodologies for assessments of real life cases in the Canadian nuclear industry. The all-encompassing approach makes The Effect of Hydrogen and Hydrides on the Integrity of Zirconium Alloy Component: Delayed Hydride Cracking an ideal reference source for students, researchers and industry professionals alike.

The study of metal hydrides opens up promising avenues for the solution of world energy problems, as well as casting light on the interactions of hydrogen with materials, the role of hydrogen in materials science, and the chemistry of metal hydrides, all of which are discussed in this book in terms that range from a global look at the new vision of energy and how hydrogen fits into that future to reviews such as a look at nickel hydride over the last 40 years. Very specific current research in such areas as hydrogen in materials science discuss properties like superconductivity, diffusion EMF, magnetic properties, physicochemical properties, phase composition, and permeability. Hydrogen can also be used as a processing or alloying agent, and in the synthesis of battery electrodes, composite materials and alloys. The interaction of hydrogen with many metals, composites and alloys offers potential hydrogen storage systems. There is also a discussion of hydrogen sensors.

Boron Hydride Chemistry covers the significant contributions of boron hydride research in the subjects of bonding, structure, and stereochemistry. This book contains 12 chapters that illustrate the merging of certain areas of boron hydride chemistry with other disciplines, such as organic, organometallic, and transition metal chemistry. After providing an overview of the general geometric, stereochemical, and dynamic stereochemical features of boron hydrides, this book goes on exploring the bonding theory and theoretical research on boron hydrides, with an emphasis on boron hydrides that have open polyhedral structures. These topics are followed by discussions on gas phase and solution reactions of borane and substituted boranes. A chapter focuses on the chemistry of cations containing boron atoms bonded to hydrogen. The remaining chapters examine the syntheses, structures, bonding, spectral properties, and chemistry of specific boron hydrides, including borazines, closo-boron hydrides, carboranes, icosahedral carboranes, and close- and nido-heteroboranes. Inorganic chemists and researchers, teachers, and undergraduate inorganic chemistry students will find this book invaluable.