BCC SOLID SOLUTION TYPE HYDROGEN STORAGE ALLOY WITH EXCELLENT HYDROGEN MIGRATION CAPACITY, AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING THE HYDROGEN STORAGE ALLOY

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a BCC solid solution type hydrogen storage alloy used for a material for hydrogen storage, a hydrogen absorbing material for thermal conversion, a hydrogen supply material for fuel battery, a negative-electrode material for Ni-hydrogen battery, a material for hydrogen purification and recovery, a hydrogen absorbing material for hydrogen gas actuator, or the like and exhibiting excellent hydrogen absorption/desorption characteristics at ambient temperature (20 to 80°C) in particular and also to provide a method for manufacturing the alloy.;SOLUTION: A coating layer is formed on the surface of a BCC solid solution type hydrogen storage alloy by means of vapor deposition, sputtering, plating, etc., by using a material, such as LaNi₅ and Pd, having excellent ability of dissociating hydrogen molecules. By this method, reactivity at hydrogen absorption/desorption can be accelerated and hydrogen absorption/desorption in a solid-solution region can be facilitated, and an effect of increasing available hydrogen migration capacity can be obtained. Further, because of increased reactivity with hydrogen, the rate of hydrogenation can be increased and initial activation can be facilitated. Moreover, the slope of the plateau region can be reduced, depending on an alloy composition.;COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO