Novel Application of Porous Mg-Doped 2223-BPSCCO Superconductor-Induced Metastable Plumbane as Hydrogen Storage

A series of superconducting samples including pure Bi₂Sr₂Ca₂C₃O₁₀ (BSCCO), Pb-doped BSCCO (Bi_1.35Pb_0.65Sr₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀), Mg-doped BSCCO (Bi_1.65Mg_0.35Sr₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀), and optimally co-doped Pb-Mg-BSCCO with an optimal formula of BiPb_0.65Mg_0.35Sr₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀ (108K superconductor) were carefully synthesized and optimized with a maximum ratio of incorporated lead and magnesium, achieving both quality of structural features and an improved T_c offset of 108 K. The optimized porous sample was well characterized via x-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and three-dimensional atomic force microscopy (3D-AFM). In addition, the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) specific surface area was estimated at 11.9 m²g⁻¹. Porous Mg-doped BPSCCO exhibited high performance efficiency for H₂ storage, recording maximum H₂ uptake of 5.92 wt.% at a temperature of 270°C and pressure of 14 bar. A mechanism of loaded hydrogen was proposed. Magnesium and lead incorporated in 2223-BPSCCO were suggested to play a vital role in hydrogen storage as Mg hydride and Pb as plumbane.