Textural analysis of aluminum hydride

[Display omitted] •An energy material, aluminum hydride (alane, AlH3) was synthesized through a wet process.•The extracted alane crystal form is related to the proportion of the initial reactants: LiAlH4 and AlCl3.•The distance of atomic lattice observed by TEM was 9–12Å, implying the same chemical structure. The textural properties of aluminum hydride (alane, AlH3) prepared by wet synthesis from lithium aluminum hydride (LiAlH4) and aluminum chloride (AlCl3) were closely investigated with a focus on the effect of reactant ratios on crystal formation. XRD analysis showed that three crystals were almost similar, α-type AlH3, despite the different external morphology. TEM observations also demonstrated their similarity in chemical structures with an average lattice distance between atoms of 1.16Å. Slight differences in thermal decomposition and hydrogen content of each crystalline alane would be due to morphological difference and a little amount of impurities or by-products. When the ratio of reactants (LiAlH4 and AlCl3) was 3:1, a more evident cubic form which is desirable for the use of high energy propellants could be obtained, and the crystal size was 10–20μm.