HYDRATION CHARACTERISTICS OF METAL HYDRIDE FIXED IN RESIN FORM

Metal hydride powders were fixed in resin forms of two different shapes, a cylinder and a film. The pressure-composition-temperature (PCT) characteristics and the durability to the hydriding/dehydriding cycles were tested. The PCT characteristics were found to show a similar trend to that of untreated powders, except for a slight decrease in hydration capacity and a slight increase in the pressure hysteresis. The hydration rate increased with increase in metal hydride content and was not much different from that of powders of samples with a high content of metal hydride. Further, from SEM observation it was confirmed that the metal powders were well fixed in the resin matrix in spite of the breakdown of the powders themselves after several repetitive operations. Little damage was observed to the base resin with repetition. It is concluded that the metal-hydride fixation tested in this work is applicable as a new functional method with durability.