One electron is enough: A chemical bonding approach on the hydrogen induced structural transformation in MPd3 (M = Mg, In, Tl) intermetallic compounds

Abstract

It is crucial to understand the nature of the metal-hydrogen interactions in the intermetallic hydrides in order to develop new hydrogen storage materials with optimum metal-H interactions for desired hydrogen absorption-desorption kinetics. The MPd3 intermetallic compounds (M = Mg, In, Tl) transform to cubic anti-perovskite type (AuCu3-type with hydrogen in the octahedral intersect) structure from ZrAl3-type four-fold ccp-superstructure up on hydrogenation. According to the DFT-based orbital space electronic structure and chemical bonding analysis, this structural transformation is driven by maximizing the coordination of hydrogen surrounded by Pd, forming the Pd (4d) – H (1s), and … Pd–H–Pd … multicenter interactions. These interactions provide sufficient thermodynamic stability for the hydrides to form, with negative binding energies of hydrogen. The binding energies are found to be significantly low, with the possibility of the ease of hydrogen desorption within limited reaction conditions.