Abstract: The effects of the holding times of magnesium hydriding reaction and the synthesis temperatures on the hydriding combustion synthesis （HCS） of Mg₂Ni were studied by means of X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and hydriding kinetic measurement. The results show that the hydrogen storage capacity of Mg₂Ni increases obviously with the increasing synthesis temperature （the hydrogen storage capacity of the sample reaches 3.36wt% at synthesis temperature of 850 K）. The influences of holding time during magnesium hydriding reaction vary with the different synthesis temperatures.