Advanced preparation and processing techniques for high energy fuel AlH₃

As a novel energetic material, aluminum hydride (AlH₃) has attracted much attention because of its high hydrogen storage capacity and rapid dehydrogenation at low temperatures, which can be used as a promising energetic additive in solid propellants or in some other areas such as catalysts, fuel cell, and reducing agents. In particular, AlH₃ as a component of solid propellant may largely promote the specific impulse of rocket engines and effectively reducing the erosion of engine nozzles. This review focuses on the research results in synthesis/regeneration, thermal decomposition, oxidation, ignition and combustion characteristics, and stabilization of AlH₃ over the past decades. In particular, the stabilizing of AlH₃ is essential for the its application in solid propellants, where the most widely used strategies have been introduced and compared, based on which some suggestions regarding possible future research directions are proposed.