Hydrogen inhibition of wet AlLi alloy dust collector systems using a composite green biopolymer inhibitor based on chitosan/sodium alginate: Experimental and theoretical studies.

Aluminum‑lithium (AlLi) alloy polishing and grinding processes in wet dust collector systems could cause hydrogen fire and explosion. From the fundamental perspective of preventing hydrogen explosions, a safe, nontoxic, and sustainable modified green hydrogen inhibitor based on chitosan (CS) and sodium alginate (SA) was developed in this study and was used as a hydrogen evolution inhibitor for the processing of waste dust from AlLi alloys. The structure and elemental distribution of the synthesized material were characterized through characterization experiments. Hydrogen evolution experiments and a hydrolysis kinetic model were used to explore the inhibitory effect of modified CS/SA on AlLi alloy dust, and the results revealed that the inhibitory concentration of the hydrogen explosion lower limit was 0.40 wt%, with an inhibition efficiency of 91.93 %, indicating an 11.88-61.44 % improvement over that of CS and SA. As the inhibitor concentration increased and the temperature decreased, the hydrogen inhibition effect increased. Characterization experiments and density functional theory showed that CS/SA primarily formed a dense physical protective barrier on the dust surface through chemical adsorption and complexation reactions, interrupting the hydrogen evolution reaction between the metal and water. This study introduces a novel green modified hydrogen inhibitor that fundamentally addresses hydrogen generation and explosion.