TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Device: The substrate of shape-memory material is shaped as a cylindrical bar covered with a coating including material with adsorbing power.The coating of adsorbing material is provided in its turn with a layer of noble metal having both storage and hydrogen catalytic dissociation functions or with a layer of metallic or polymeric material acting as porous membrane.The material with adsorbing power is laid in nanometric form onto shape-memory microparticles, preferably covered with a layer of palladium or other noble metal having a protective and catalytic function.The device comprises a stack of plates made of shape-memory material alternated with layers of adsorbing material and immersed into a deformable polymeric matrix controlling adsorption/desorption kinetics; and several of threads of shape-memory material immersed into the adsorbing material and arranged in various directions, and optionally a deformable polymeric matrix controlling adsorption/desorption kinetics.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - METALLURGY - Preferred Components: The adsorbing material is selected from carbonaceous materials (e.g. carbon nanotubes, carbon nanofibers), metals (e.g. Li, Na, K, Mg or other alkali or alkali-earth metals of alanate type, Ti, Pd), metal alloys (e.g. NiTi, LaNi5, FeTi, MgNi, LiB, MOF-Metal organic frameworks), or other materials with adsorbing power and/or hybrids.The shape-memory material is selected from shape-memory-alloys e.g. Ni-based alloys, e.g. Ni-Ti, Ni-Ti-Cu, Ni-Ti-Fe, Ni-Ti-Cr, Ni-Al; -Cu-based alloys, e.g. Cu-Al-Ni, Cu-Zn-_X (X= Si, Sn, Al), Cu-Zn, Cu-Sn; magnetic alloys, e.g. Ni-Mn-Ga; high temperature alloys, e.g. Ni-Ti-Hf; other alloys, e.g. Fe-Pt, Fe-Mn-Si, Mn-Cu, In-Ti, Ag-Cd, Au-Cd.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - POLYMERS - Preferred Components: The adsorbing material is a small molecule or polymeric or metal-organic hybrid, organic or inorganic material.The metal-organic hybrid is polymers e.g. polyanilines, polytetrafluoroethylene, polyamide, polyether ketone, polypropylene, polyvinylidene, polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride or polyimide.The shape-memory material is selected from any other alloy having a different elementary composition and with a reversible thermoplastic martensitic transformation, electrorestrictive and/or electrorestrictor polymers, e.g. silicones, fluorosilicones, acrylic polymers, PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride), TrFe (trifluoroethylene), HFP (hexafluoropropane), shape-memory polymers, e.g. polyurethane electromechanically conducting polymers e.g. polyaniline, piezoelectric materials such as ceramic materials e.g. PZT (lead zirconium titanate), single crystal materials e.g. PZN, power transduction (PT) material, polymers e.g. copolymer of vinylidene and trifluoroethylene (PVDF), magnetorestrictive materials.