Ammonia has gained significant attention worldwide as the most effective hydrogen carrier for hydrogen storage and transportation purposes. Korean researchers have developed a ground-breaking technology for creating a catalyst for the decomposition of ammonia to produce hydrogen.

Dr. Koo, Kee Young and her team from the Hydrogen Research Department of the Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER), along with President Yi Chang-keun, have successfully developed an exceptional Ru-based catalyst for ammonia decomposition. This excellent catalyst consists of Ceria as a catalytic promoter combined with a Ru-based catalyst. However, only half the usual amount of expensive Ruthenium is used, which still results in the most efficient performance in hydrogen production.

The Ru-based catalyst with Ceria as a promoter is found to be as a low-cost and highly efficient option. The formula is highly effective in terms of reproducibility and practicality, allowing for mass production. The developed catalyst has demonstrated the highest performance in terms of hydrogen formation rate, reaching 27.4 mmolH2/gcat·min, at a low temperature of 450℃. It also demonstrates a hydrogen production rate that is 8 times higher compared to the Ru/MgAl2O4 catalyst, which does not include Ceria as a catalytic promoter.

Dr. Koo states that the newly developed catalyst for ammonia composition is expected to accelerate the implementation of the hydrogen economy and play a crucial role in localizing large-scale ammonia-based green hydrogen production plants.

This achievement has been published in Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, which is a highly esteemed international academic journal in the field of materials and catalysts. It has an impact factor of 22.1, placing it in the top 0.9% of journals in its field.