Production of an Alcohol-Based Hydrogen Storing Polymer

Producing and storing hydrogen are important issues for the 21st century. In this paper, we report a method for instantaneous alcohol polymerization and hydrogen storage using hydrogen-rich 1-butanol as the starting material. Electron bombardment of 1-butanol produced a conductive liquid polymer that contained unstable hydrogen ions. Hydrogen was then extracted by the application of electricity. The reaction was quickly started and stopped at room temperature. The resulting alcohol polymers will be good candidates as fuel batteries for cell phones, motor vehicles, and spacecraft.