Review on the design of high-strength and hydrogen-embrittlement-resistant steels

Given the carbon peak and carbon neutrality era,there is an urgent need to develop high-strength steel with remarkable hydrogen embrittlement resistance.This is crucial in enhancing toughness and ensuring the utilization of hydrogen in emerging iron and steel materials.Simultaneously,the pursuit of enhanced metallic materials presents a cross-disciplinary scientific and engineering challenge.Developing high-strength,toughened steel with both enhanced strength and hydrogen embrittlement(HE)resistance holds significant theoretical and practical implications.This ensures secure hydrogen utilization and further carbon neutrality objectives within the iron and steel sector.Based on the design principles of high-strength steel HE resistance,this review provides a comprehensive overview of research on designing surface HE resistance and employing nanosized precipitates as intragranular hydrogen traps.It also proposes feasible recommendations and prospects for designing high-strength steel with enhanced HE resistance.

Environmental Embrittlement of Fe-based, Co-based, Ni-based and Ti-based Intermetallics in Gaseous Hydrogen

The environmental embrittlement of intermetallics Co3Ti, Ni3Al, Fe3Al and TiAl has been investigated by measuring the tensile properties in oxygen and hydrogen at 2×l0-4/s strain rate. The results show that the hydrogen embrittlement factor in gaseous hydrogen (IH2 ) defined as[(δO2 -δH2 ) / δH2, ] ×l00% of above mentioned four intermetallics is decreased in the sequence of Co3Ti> Ni3Al> Fe3Al> TiAl. This phenomena can be explained by the different catalytic reaction on the surface of matrix metals (such as Ni, Co, Fe, Ti) with decomposition of H2 into atommic hydrogen, leading to hydrogen embrittlement.

Hydrogen embrittlement of X80 pipeline steel in H2S environment: Effect of hydrogen charging time, hydrogen-trapped state and hydrogen charging–releasing–recharging cycles

This study investigated the susceptibility of X80 pipeline steel to hydrogen embrittlement given different hydrogen pre-charging times and hydrogen charging–releasing–recharging cycles in H2S environment.The fracture strain of the steel samples decreased with increasing hydrogen pre-charging time;this steel degradation could almost be recovered after diffusible hydrogen was removed when the hydrogen pre-charging time was<8 d.However,unrecoverable degeneration occurred when the hydrogen pre-charging time extended to 16–30 d.Moreover,nanovoid formation meant that the hydrogen damage to the steel under intermittent hydrogen pre-charging–releasing–recharging conditions was more serious than that under continuous hydrogen pre-charging conditions.This study illustrated that the mechanical degradation of steel is inevitable in an H2S environment even if diffusible hydrogen is removed or visible hydrogen-induced cracking is neglected.Furthermore,the steel samples showed premature fractures and exhibited a hydrogen fatigue effect because the repeated entry and release of diffusible hydrogen promoted the formation of vacancies that aggregated into nanovoids.Our results provide valuable information on the mechanical degradation of steel in an H2S environment,regarding the change rules of steel mechanical properties under different hydrogen pre-charging times and hydrogen charging–releasing–recharging cycles.

ELECTRONIC STATES AND HYDROGEN EMBRITTLEMENTIN TRANSITION METALS

An electronic approach to the mechanism of hydrogen embrittlement in metals is pre-sented and discussed. Some problems of the mechanism of hydrogen embrittlement are pointed out from an electronic point of view. Electronic structure calculations in a periodically cleaved or slipped lattice are developed in orker to identofy deformation-sensitive electronic states in the absence of hydrogen. The calculational results are given and discussed for a trunsition metal, Pd. Electronic structure calculations in the presence of hydrogen are outlined and hydrogen embrittlement in transition metals is discussed in terms of electronic states.

Effect of Ordering on Embrittlement of Ni4Mo Alloy in Hydrogen Gas

The fracture behavior of disordered and ordered Ni4Mo alloy was investigated by tensile tests in hydrogen gas or during hydrogen charging. The results show that the ductility of the disordered alloy decreased slightly with the hydrogen pressure increasing, while that of the ordered alloy decreased rapidly with the hydrogen pressure increasing. However, the ductility of both disordered and ordered alloys reduced similarly seriously with the charging current density increasing. Therefore, the mechanism of order-induced embrittlement of Ni4 Mo alloy in hydrogen gas is supposed to be that atomic order accelerates the kinetics of the catalytic reaction for the dissociation of molecular H2 into atomic H.

Effect of in-situ nanoparticles on the mechanical properties and hydrogen embrittlement of high-strength steel

We investigated the critical influence of in-situ nanoparticles on the mechanical properties and hydrogen embrittlement(HE)of high-strength steel.The results reveal that the mechanical strength and elongation of quenched and tempered steel(919 MPa yield strength,17.11%elongation)are greater than those of hot-rolled steel(690 MPa yield strength,16.81%elongation)due to the strengthening effect of insitu Ti_(3)O_(5)–Nb(C,N)nanoparticles.In addition,the HE susceptibility is substantially mitigated to 55.52%,approximately 30%lower than that of steels without in-situ nanoparticles(84.04%),which we attribute to the heterogeneous nucleation of the Ti_(3)O_5 nanoparticles increasing the density of the carbides.Compared with hard TiN inclusions,the spherical and soft Al_(2)O_(3)–MnS core–shell inclusions that nucleate on in-situ Al_(2)O_(3) particles could also suppress HE.In-situ nanoparticles generated by the regional trace-element supply have strong potential for the development of high-strength and hydrogen-resistant steels.

Effect of shot peening on hydrogen embrittlement of high strength steel

The effect of shot peening（SP） on hydrogen embrittlement of high strength steel was investigated by electrochemical hydrogen charging, slow strain rate tensile tests, and hydrogen permeation tests. Microstructure observation, microhardness, and X-ray diffraction residual stress studies were also conducted on the steel. The results show that the shot peening specimens exhibit a higher resistance to hydrogen embrittlement in comparison with the no shot peening（NSP） specimens under the same hydrogen-charging current density. In addition, SP treatment sharply decreases the apparent hydrogen diffusivity and increases the subsurface hydrogen concentration. These findings are attributed to the changes in microstructure and compressive residual stress in the surface layer by SP. Scanning electron microscope fractographs reveal that the fracture surface of the NSP specimen exhibits the intergranular and quasi-cleavage mixed fracture modes, whereas the SP specimen shows only the quasi-cleavage fractures under the same hydrogen charging conditions, implying that the SP treatment delays the onset of intergranular fracture.

INFLUENCE OF INTERNAL HYDROGEN ON THE HYDROGENEMBRITTLEMENT OF AUSTENITIC STAINLESS STEEL

The HE (hydrogen embrittlement) behavior of two kinds of austenitic stee Cr21Ni6Mn9 and 1Cr18Ni9Ti is reprted in this paper. The factors (temperc-ture/strain rate/stress concentration coefficient and purity of hydrogen) are restricted to the severe conditions under which HE is easy to occur. The concentmtion of in-ternal hydrogen in samples is changed by varying the time during which samples are placed in 24 MPa hydrogen at 473 K Then the tensile properties of the samples are tested. The results indicate that the degree of the hydrogen-induced plastic loss (L)of Cr21Ni6Mn9 is different with the internal hydrogen(CH). Howeven even when CH is as high as 70 PPm L is 15% and the fracture may be explained as a larpe amount of internal hydrogen hinders the cross-slip of dislocations when the steel is deforming.For the metastable steel 1Cr18Ni9Ti the hydrogen-induced plastic loss is severer than that of Cr21Ni6Mn9. When CH is 40 PPm its L is as high as 42%. The mechanism may be explained as a larpe amount of hyderpen decreases the stacking fault enerpy and brittle ε-phase is produed in the high CH areas.

Effect of δ Phase on Hydrogen Embrittlement of Inconel 718 by Notch Tensile Tests

The effect of δ phase on the hydrogen embrittlement (HE) sensitivity of Inconel 718 was investigated by conducting notch tensile tests. Notch tensile specimens with various precipitation morphologies of δ phase were prepared with different heat treatments, and hydrogen was charged into the tensile specimens before tensile tests via a cathodic charging process. The loss of notch tensile strength (NTS) due to the charged hydrogen was used to evaluate the hydrogen embrittlement sensitivity. The results show that δ phase has deleterious effect on NTSs, and the fracture of hydrogen-charged specimens initiated near the notch surfaces. The loss of NTS caused by precharged hydrogen can be greatly decreased by dissolving δ phase. δ-free Inconel 718 alloy is proposed for the applications in hydrogen environments.

Control of repair effect and hydrogen embrittlement risk by parameters optimization for BIEM

Bidirectional electromigration rehabilitation(BIEM)is a novel electrochemical rehabilitation method involving the injection of inhibitors into steel bar surface.The BIEM effect and hydrogen embrittlement(HE)risk depend on the electrochemical parameters(current density and duration)and operating condition(stress level and concrete cover thickness)of reinforced concrete structures.Experiments were performed in this study to investigate the relationships between the aforementioned factors.For a small current density group,a linear relationship was established between electric flux and chloride extraction.For a large current density group,the reasonable current density,stress level,and treatment time were obtained.Finally,the querying method of electrochemical parameters combined with treatment time and current density was proposed.

SURFACE REACTION，HYDROGEN DIFFUSIVITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL EMBRITTLEMENT OF INTERMETALLIC COMPOUNDS Ni_3Al AND Fe_3Al

The effect of boron doping on the sensitivity to environmental embrittlement of Ni3Al-based alloys was investigated in this paper. The results show that the ductilizing effect of boron in Ni3Al is partly to suppress moisture-induced hydrogen embrittlement.The mechanism of this suppressing effect of boron relates to its severely decreasing the hydrogen diffusivity by boron segregated at the grain boundaries. The surface reaction of Fe3Al with water vapor and oxygen was experimentally confirmed by AES and XPS analysis. The kinetics of these reactions can be used to explain the different ductility behavior of aluminides in various environments.

Effect of atomic ordering on environmental embrittlement of (Co, Fe)_3V alloy in gaseous hydrogen

The diffusible hydrogen contents in precharged (Co,Fe) 3V alloy were measured. It is found that atomic ordering can not promote hydrogen penetration in the (Co,Fe) 3V alloy. The ultimate tensile strength (UTS) and ductilities in various condition were also investigated. The results show that the UTS and elongation of disordered alloy are higher than that of ordered one with fixed diffusible hydrogen content and (Co,Fe) 3V alloy with ordered structure is highly susceptible to the embrittlement in hydrogen gas. The factor which may affect the susceptibility to the embrittlement of (Co,Fe) 3V alloy in hydrogen gas is mainly due to that the atomic ordering may accelerate the kinetics of the catalytic reaction for the dissociation of molecular hydrogen into atomic hydrogen. However, it can not be roled out that atomic ordering intensifies planar slip and restricts cross slip at the grain boundaries and enhances the susceptibility of the alloy to hydrogen embrittlement.

Elemental segregation inhibits hydrogen embrittlement in aluminium alloys

In this study, we performed first-principles calculations to determine the effects of four metallic solutes (Y, Zr, Mg,and Zn) on the hydrogen embrittlement (HE) of aluminum alloys with the Σ5(210) grain boundary (GB). Thesegregation energy, associated segregation concentration, and binding energy of these solutes were examined toidentify their states. Moreover, the ability of the aforementioned solutes to inhibit or promote HE in the aforementioned alloys through GB energy, free surface energy, and adhesion was investigated. The Griffith andRice–Wang–Scheiber models were used to determine the effect of nonequilibrium concentration on adhesion.Tensile tests were performed using the uniaxial strain loading method to determine the ultimate tensile strengthand GB elongation of the considered alloys. The mechanism of HE inhibition by the four solutes was investigatedby examining the charge density, Bader charge, and crystal orbital Hamiltonian population of the alloys. Finally,the calculation results of this study were validated through experiments.

EFFECT OF LASER CLADDING ON HYDROGEN EMBRITTLEMENT RESISTANCE OF AUSTENITIC STAINLESS STEEL

A plasma spraying plus laser remelting technique has been performed. onaustenite stainless steel (22Cr-13Ni-5Mn ) with a newly developed hydrogen resistantcoating material. The results show that the surface cladding layer can effectively reducethe hydrogen content increasing of the stainless steel under the atmosphere of high pres-sure (30MPa), high temperature (300℃) and high purity (99. 995%) hydrogen andgreatly improve the hydrogen embrittlement resistance of the stain1ess steel. Throughanalysis of microstructure, a mechanism of hydrogen embrittlement resistance is presentedthat at room temperature, the surface oxidation films, both existing on the surface ofcoated and uncoated specimens, inhibit the adsorption and diffusion of hydrogen molecu-lae. However, at high temperature, it is the surface cladding layer with relatively low sol-ubility and Permeability for hydrogen that significantly reduces the amount of hydrogenentering into the interior of the material and improves its hydrogen embrittfement resis-tance.

Hydrogen Embrittlement Processes and Al/Al_2O_3 Hydrogen Resistance Coatings of NdFeB Magnets

After analyzing the phenomena and processes of hydrogen embrittlement of NdFeB permanent magnets, RF magnetron sputtering was used to fabricate Al thin films and then oxidized to form the Al/Al_2O_3 composite films on the magnets as the hydrogen resistance coatings. SEM and EDS were used to examine the morphology and composition respectively. Hydrogen resistance performance was tested by exposing the magnets in 10 MPa hydrogen gas at room temperature. The results show that the magnets with 8 μm Al/Al_2O_3 coatings can withstand hydrogen of 10 MPa for 65 min without being embrittled into powder. The samples with and without hydrogen resistance coatings have almost the same magnetic properties.

EFFECT OF TRACE ELEMENTS P AND Mn ON THE MICROSTRUCTURE AND HYDROGEN EMBRITTLEMENT OF AN Fe－Ni－Co BASED SUPERALLOY

In this paper,the microstructure and hydrogen embrittlement(HE) susceptibility of an Fe-Ni-Co based superalloy with different contents of trace elements,P and Mn,have been investigated.The results indicated that by lowering the contents of trace elements P and Mn,the size and distribution of γ' become more homogeneous,and the precipitation of stable phase η can be retarded to longer ageing time.As a result,the hydrogen resistant properties of the alloy are obviously improved.

EFFECT OF AGING ON HYDROGEN EMBRITTLEMENT SUSCEPTIBILITY OF STEEL Cr21Ni6Mn9N

Effects of 650℃ aging for 1—1000 h on structure and hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility (HES)of steel Cr21Ni6Mn9N have been investigated.The results show that M_(23)C_6 type carbide precipitates at grain boundaries and Cr-depletive region appears beside them during aging.The precipitates grow and connect each other as the aging time prolongs.Meanwhile, the degree of Cr-depletion aggravates first and then recovers gradually while the aging time is very long,i.e.,1000 h.The HES of the steel increases with increasing aging time but does not reduce with the recovery of Cr content at the Cr-depletive region.That implies that the ex- isting of carbides at grain boundaries might be the main reason which promotes the HES of steel during aging.

EFFECT OF COMPOSITION ON HYDROGEN EMBRITTLEMENT IN Ni-Fe FCC ALLOYS

The ductility loss and threshold stress intensity,K_(IH)during hydrogen charging were measured for pure Ni and four Ni-Fe fcc alloys.The results show that ductility loss in 40Ni60Fe alloy and K_(IH)a 50Ni50Fe alloy have a minimum value.The variations of the amounts of hydride, hydrogen evolution and dislocation structure with composition have been investigated.The va- riation of hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility with composition measured by ductility loss and by K_(IH)or K_(IH)/K_C can be explained by means of the synthetical effects of amount of hydride,solutionized hydrogen and the extent of dislocation planarity on hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility.

Effect of vanadium on hydrogen embrittlement of grade 12.9 high-strength bolt steels

In this study, the effect of vanadium addition(0.25%) on microstructure and hydrogen embrittlement(HE) was investigated in grade 12.9 bolt steels, and hydrogen diffusion was analyzed by hydrogen permeation.The results show that the addition of 0.25% vanadium in bolt steels can significantly improve the HE resistance.Vanadium addition can form a large number of vanadium precipitates, resulting in the uniform distribution of hydrogen and reduction of hydrogen accumulated at local grain boundaries, which promotes the inhibition of hydrogen-induced cracking.

Relation between Gamma Decomposition and Powder Formation of <i>γ</i>-U8Mo Nuclear Fuel Alloys via Hydrogen Embrittlement and Thermal Shock

Gamma uranium-molybdenum alloys have been considered as the fuel phase in plate type fuel elements for material and test reactors (MTR), due to their acceptable performance under irradiation. Regarding their usage as a dispersion phase in aluminum matrix, it is necessary to convert the as cast structure into powder, and one of the techniques considered for this purpose is the hydration-dehydration (HDH). This paper shows that, under specific conditions of heating and cooling, γ-UMo fragmentation occurs in a non-reactive predominant mechanism, as shown by the curves of hydrogen absorption/desorption as a function of time and temperature. Our focus was on the experimental results presented by the addition of 8% weight molybdenum. Following the production by induction melting, samples of the alloys were thermally treated under a constant flow of hydrogen for temperatures varying from 500°C to 600°C and for times of 0.5 to 4 h. It was observed that, even without a massive hydration-dehydration process, the alloys fragmented under specific conditions of thermal treatment during the thermal shock phase of the experiments. Also, it was observed that there was a relation between absorption and the rate of gamma decomposition or the gamma phase stability of the alloy.