Tetrahydroborates: Development and potential as hydrogen storage medium

The use of fossil fuels as an energy supply becomes increasingly problematic from the point of view of both environmental emissions and energy sustainability. As an alternative, hydrogen is widely regarded as a key element for a potential energy solution. However, differently from fossil fuels such as oil, gas, and coal, the production of hydrogen requires energy. Alternative and intermittent renewable energy sources such as solar power, wind power, etc., present multiple advantages for the production of hydrogen. On the one hand, the renewable sources contribute to a remarkable reduction of pollutants released to the air and on the other hand, they significantly enhance the sustainability of energy supply. In addition, the storage of energy in form of hydrogen has a huge potential to balance an effective and synergetic utilization of renewable energy sources. In this regard, hydrogen storage technology is a key technology towards the practical application of hydrogen as “energy carrier”. Among the methods available to store hydrogen, solid-state storage is the most attractive alternative from both the safety and the volumetric energy density points of view. Because of their appealing hydrogen content, complex hydrides and complex hydride-based systems have attracted considerable attention as potential energy vectors for mobile and stationary applications. In this review, the progresses made over the last century on the synthesis and development of tetrahydroborates and tetrahydroborate-based systems for hydrogen storage purposes are summarized.