Fatigue crack growth behavior of JIS SCM440 steel near fatigue threshold in 9-MPa hydrogen gas environment

In this study, stress intensity factor range (ΔK) decreasing tests were conducted and the in-situ observations were used to investigate the fatigue crack growth behavior of JIS SCM440 steel near the fatigue threshold in a 9-MPa hydrogen gas environment. The fatigue crack growth rate reflected the threshold behavior of the material, although the crack propagation knee point immediately before the threshold stress intensity factor range (ΔK_th) could not be distinctly identified. The fatigue crack was also observed to exhibit uneven propagation immediately before ΔK_th. In contrast, the knee points in a helium gas environment and air were very distinct. Fractographic analysis further revealed the existence of intergranular facets, which were observed immediately before ΔK_th in the hydrogen gas environment. Conversely, no facet was observed immediately before ΔK_th in the helium gas environment and air. The formation of the facets was considered to be one of the causes of the uneven crack propagation immediately before ΔK_th in the hydrogen gas environment.     

Fatigue crack propagation under gaseous hydrogen in a precipitation-hardened martensitic stainless steel

A test device has been developed at P′ Institute in order to investigate the mechanical behaviour of structural materials under high pressure of gaseous hydrogen. In this paper, preliminary results on fatigue crack propagation in a martensitic stainless steel are presented. A tremendous fatigue crack growth enhancement is observed at high pressure (9 MPa). This enhancement is dependent of pressure. It is noticed that the maximum enhancement is associated with a brittle fracture mode. However no intergranular decohesion is noticed in this regime.     

Effect of residual hydrogen content on the tensile properties and crack propagation behavior of a type 316 stainless steel

The tensile properties and crack propagation rate in a type 316 austenitic stainless steel prepared by vacuum induction melting method with different residual hydrogen contents (1.1–11.5 × 10⁻⁶) were systematically investigated in this research work. The room temperature tensile properties were measured under both regular tensile (12 mm/min) and slow tensile (0.01 mm/min) conditions, and the fracture properties of the tensile fractures with both rates were analyzed. It shows that the hydrogen induced plasticity loss of stainless steel strongly depends on the tensile rate. Under regular tensile condition, there is no plastic loss even when the hydrogen content is up to 11.5 × 10⁻⁶ while in the slow tensile condition, the plastic loss can be clearly identified rising with the increasing H contents. The fatigue crack propagation rate was tested at room temperature, and the crack growth rate formula (Paris) of the 316 stainless steels with varied H contents were obtained. The fatigue crack propagation rate test shows that the crack growth rate of the 316 stainless steel with 8.0–11.5 × 10⁻⁶ hydrogen is significantly higher than that of benchmark steel.     

Dependence of hydrogen embrittlement on hydrogen in the surface layer in type 304 stainless steel

Hydrogen embrittlement (HE) together with the hydrogen transport behavior in hydrogen-charged type 304 stainless steel was investigated by combined tension and outgassing experiments. The hydrogen release rate and HE of hydrogen-charged 304 specimens increase with the hydrogen pressure for hydrogen-charging (or hydrogen content) and almost no HE is observed below the hydrogen content of 8.5 mass ppm. Baking at 433 K for 48 h can eliminate HE of the hydrogen-charged 304 specimen, while removing the surface layer will restore HE, which indicates that hydrogen in the surface layer plays the primary role in HE. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and scanning tunnel microscopy (STM) observations show that particles attributed to the strain-induced α′ martensite formation break away from the matrix and the small holes form during deformation on the specimen surface. With increasing strain, the connection among small holes along {111} slip planes of austenite will cause crack initiation on the surface, and then the hydrogen induced crack propagates from the surface to interior.     

Slow strain rate technique for studying hydrogen induced cracking in 34CrMo4 high strength steel

Alloy hardened steels offer excellent combination of mechanical properties, hardenability and corrosion resistance. 34CrMo4 is a medium carbon, low alloy steel widely used due to a good combination of high-strength, toughness and wear resistance. However, this steel experiences hydrogen embrittlement (HE), a complex phenomenon depending on the composition and microstructure. This work estimates de loss of the mechanical properties caused by hydrogen in electrochemically H-charged specimens in absence of mechanical stress but also, at low strain rate and constant load. H-charging for 2 and 6 h induce YS losses of about 40% and 71% and UTS losses of 39% and 59%, respectively. The synergistic effect of the stress and the H-charging process leads to a higher loss, 91%, and a faster brittle fracture even though hydrogen content is similar to those firstly H-charged and then tested in air.     

The dependence of fatigue crack growth on hydrogen in warm-rolled 316 austenitic stainless steel

The fatigue crack growth rate of warm-rolled AISI 316 austenitic stainless steel was investigated by controlling rolling strain and temperature in argon and hydrogen gas atmospheres. The fatigue crack growth rates of warm-rolled 316 specimens tested in hydrogen decreased with increasing rolling temperature, especially 400 °C. By controlling the deformation temperature and strain, the influences of microstructure (including dislocation structure, deformation twins and α′ martensite) and its evolution on hydrogen-induced degradation of mechanical properties were separately discussed. Deformation twins deceased and dislocations became more uniform with the increase in rolling temperature, inhibiting the formation of dynamic α′ martensite during the crack propagation. In the cold-rolled 316 specimens, deformation twins accelerated hydrogen-induced crack growth due to the α′ martensitic transformation at the crack tip. In the warm-rolled specimens, the formation of α′ martensite around the crack tip was completely inhibited, which greatly reduced the fatigue crack growth rate in hydrogen atmosphere.     

Suppression of hydrogen-assisted fatigue crack growth in austenitic stainless steel by cavitation peening

In this paper we demonstrate the suppression of hydrogen-assisted fatigue crack growth in type 316L austenitic stainless steel by cavitation peening employing a cavitating jet in air. Plate bending fatigue tests on pre-cracked samples were conducted after cathodic hydrogen charging with and without cavitation peening. Without cavitation peening, the hydrogen effect on the crack growth behavior at low applied stress was clearly demonstrated compared with high applied stress in the fatigue test. The coalescence of sub-cracks and the main crack propagating from the pre-crack were observed in the hydrogen charged specimen. This phenomenon significantly accelerated the crack growth. This unexpected fracture was suppressed by introducing compressive residual stress by cavitation peening regardless of the length of processing time. In addition, lengthier treatment reduced the crack growth rate of the hydrogen charged specimen by 75% compared to an untreated one.     

Crack growth rate in hydrogen pre-charged martensitic steels during slow strain rate tests

Crack growth rate in two high strength martensitic steels with the Mo contents of 0.43 wt.% and 1.06 wt.% was investigated by means of slow strain rate tests (SSRT) on compact tensile specimens after hydrogen pre-charging. It was found that the crack growth rate increased and the values of stress intensity factors K_IH and K_Imax decreased with the increase of pre-charged hydrogen concentration. The steel with higher Mo content showed much lower crack growth rate than the steel with lower Mo content. It could be attributed to more nano-sized precipitates that can act as the hydrogen trapping sites and mitigate hydrogen deleterious effects on crack growth rate and the K_IH and K_Imax values.     

The role of induced α′-martensite on the hydrogen-assisted fatigue crack growth of austenitic stainless steels

The effects of rolling on the hydrogen-assisted fatigue crack growth characteristics of AISI 301, 304L and 310S stainless steels (SSs) were investigated. In hydrogen, cold rolled specimens with a 20% thickness reduction were found to increase the fatigue crack growth rates (FCGRs) in the 301 and 304L SSs, and to a much lesser extent in the 310S SS. However, enhanced slip was observed for the 310S specimen in hydrogen. Hydrogen-accelerated FCGRs of the 301 and 304L SSs were related with the crack growth through the strain-induced martensite formed in the plastic zone ahead of the crack tip.     

The role of delta ferrite in hydrogen embrittlement fracture of 17-4 PH stainless steel

The role of δ-Fe in hydrogen embrittlement (HE) of 17-4 PH steel is studied in this work. Scanning Kelvin probe force microscopy result indicates that δ-Fe is a hydrogen trapping site. Accordingly, δ-Fe can reduce the hydrogen concentration of surrounding martensite and prior austenite grain boundaries (PAGBs) and imped the brittle fracture along lath boundaries and PAGBs, which can be beneficial to the HE resistance improvement. However, a cleavage fracture of δ-Fe can occur under the synergetic action of hydrogen-enhanced localized plasticity (HELP) and hydrogen enhancement of the strain-induced generation of vacancies (HESIV). These findings indicate a new path to improving HE resistance of high strength martensitic steels.     

Effect of electrotransport treatment on susceptibility of high-strength low alloy steel to hydrogen embrittlement

Electrotransport theory is defined as mass transportation of solute such as hydrogen in metal under the influence of an electrostatic force field. In this study, electrotransport treatment was applied to remove the accumulated hydrogen inside of the high-strength low alloy steel. The effectiveness of the electrotransport treatment was evaluated by hydrogen concentration measurement, slow strain rate test, and fracture surface analysis. The efficiency of electrotransport treatment is improved with increasing applied current and time, and the highest efficiency was obtained as 88.7% at 450 A for 40 min. The ultimate tensile strength and elongation of specimen after electrotransport treatment was enhanced dramatically in comparison with that of specimen under hydrogen charging condition. The brittle fracture mode was observed on the hydrogen charged specimen, but a clear ductile fracture mode was observed on the specimen after electrotransport treatment. These results confirm that the electrotransport treatment is effective to remove the accumulated hydrogen inside of the high-strength low alloy steel.     

Fatigue limit of carbon and CrMo steels as a small fatigue crack threshold in high-pressure hydrogen gas

The fatigue limit properties of a carbon steel and a low-alloy CrMo steel were investigated via fully-reversed tension-compression tests, using smooth specimens in air and in 115-MPa hydrogen gas. With respect to the CrMo steel, specimens with sharp notches were also tested in order to investigate the threshold behavior of small cracks. The obtained SN data inferred that the fatigue limit was not negatively affected by hydrogen in either of the steels. Observation of fatigue cracks in the unbroken specimens revealed that non-propagating cracks can exist even in 115-MPa hydrogen gas, and that the crack growth threshold is not degraded by hydrogen. The experimental results provide justification for the fatigue limit design of components that are to be exposed to high-pressure hydrogen gas.     

Hydrogen-enhanced fatigue crack growth behaviors in a ferritic Fe-3wt%Si steel studied by fractography and dislocation structure analysis

The effect of hydrogen (H) on the fatigue behavior is of significant importance for metallic structures. In this study, the hydrogen-enhanced fatigue crack growth rate (FCGR) tests on in-situ electrochemically H-charged ferritic Fe-3wt%Si steel with coarse grain size were conducted. Results showed strong difference between the H-charged and the non-charged conditions (reference test in laboratory air) and were in good agreement with the results from literature. With H-charging, the fracture morphology changed from transgranular (TG) type to “quasi-cleavage” (“QC”), with a different fraction depending on the loading frequency. With the help of electron channeling contrast imaging (ECCI) inside a scanning electron microscope (SEM), a relatively large area in the failed bulk specimen could be easily observed with high-resolution down to dislocation level. In this work, the dislocation sub-structure immediately under the fracture surfaces were investigated by ECCI to depict the difference in the plasticity evolution during fatigue crack growth (FCG). Based on the analysis, the H-enhanced FCG mechanisms were discussed.     

Mechanical and microstructural analysis on hydrogen-related fracture in a martensitic steel

The present study quantitatively evaluated mechanical response of hydrogen-related fracture in the as-quenched martensitic steel and correlated it to crack propagation behavior analyzed by microstructure observations. The crack-growth resistance curves revealed that the hydrogen-related intergranular cracks propagated in a stable manner even when the diffusible hydrogen content was large. Fracture initiation toughness was decreased significantly by small amounts of diffusible hydrogen. With further increasing diffusible hydrogen content, however, the fracture initiation toughness did not change and remained almost constant. On the other hand, tearing modulus, corresponding to crack-growth resistance, decreased rather gradually with increasing diffusible hydrogen content. The microstructure observations confirmed that the hydrogen-related crack propagated discontinuously in a stepwise manner on a microscopic scale. Accordingly, it was proposed that the microscopic discontinuous crack propagation could be the possible reason for the stable crack propagation.     

Specimen thickness effect on the property of hydrogen embrittlement in single edge notch tension testing of high strength pipeline steel

In the study, hydrogen effects on the fracture toughness of an API X90 pipeline steel are investigated considering specimen thickness effects. It is found that the embrittlement of fracture increases with thickness for the hydrogenated specimens. The fracture toughness of hydrogen-free specimens are about 2.9, 5.2 and 11.6 times larger than the hydrogenated ones for B/W = 0.5, 1 and 2, respectively. Digital image correlation (DIC) measurement indicates that as the specimen thickness increases, hydrogen deteriorates drastically the plasticity in the vicinity of the crack tip. A remarkably low dislocation density is observed, indicating hydrogen atom has great influence on the cohesive energy, rather than the dislocation pile-ups. Finally, it is concluded that hydrogen enhanced decohesion (HEDE) mechanism is responsible for the high hydrogen sensitivity to the specimen thickness.     

Ammonia mitigation and induction effects on hydrogen environment embrittlement of SCM440 low-alloy steel

The effect of ammonia (NH₃) contained in hydrogen (H₂) gas on hydrogen environment embrittlement (HEE) of SCM440 low-alloy steel was studied in association with the NH₃ concentration, loading rate, and gas pressure. NH₃ worked as both mitigator of the HEE and inducer of hydrogen embrittlement (HE) depending on the testing conditions. The mitigation of the HEE was achieved by the deactivation of the iron (Fe) surface for H₂ dissociation caused by the preferential adsorption of NH₃ on the Fe surface, which is enhanced by the increase in the NH₃ concentration and decrease in the H₂ gas pressure. NH₃ induced HE was caused due to creating hydrogen by the NH₃ decomposition. Since the NH₃ decomposition rate is low, the induction effect was observed when the loading rate was low. The effect of NH₃ was determined by the competition of the mitigation and induction effects.     

The inhibitory effect of carbon monoxide contained in hydrogen gas environment on hydrogen-accelerated fatigue crack growth and its loading frequency dependency

The effect of carbon monoxide (CO) contained in H₂ gas as an impurity on the hydrogen-accelerated fatigue crack growth of A333 pipe steel was studied in association with loading frequency dependency. The addition of CO to H₂ gas inhibited the accelerated fatigue crack growth due to the hydrogen. The inhibitory effect was affected by the CO content in the H₂ gas, loading frequency, and crack growth rate. Based on these results, it was revealed that the inhibitory effect of CO was governed by both competition between the rate of fresh surface creation by the crack growth and the rate of coverage of the surface by CO and time for hydrogen diffusion in the material to the crack tip with reduced hydrogen entry by CO.     

Effects of CH4 and CO on hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility of X80 pipeline steel in hydrogen blended natural gas

The slow strain rate tensile experiments are carried out to investigate the tensile properties of X80 pipeline steel in hydrogen blended natural gas environments with different H₂/CH₄/CO contents. Mechanical properties and fracture morphologies are further analyzed. The results show that the hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility of X80 steel can be inhibited by the presence of CH₄/CO, and the inhibition mechanisms are discussed. When the CH₄ contents increase above 20 vol%, the inhibition on hydrogen embrittlement of X80 steel is stabilized. By comparison, the inhibitory effect of CO is more significant.     

Hydrogen embrittlement and associated surface crack growth in fine-grained equiatomic CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy alloys with different annealing temperatures evaluated by tensile testing under in situ hydrogen charging

The effect of the annealing temperature after cold rolling on hydrogen embrittlement resistance was investigated with a face-centered cubic (FCC) equiatomic CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy alloy using tensile testing under electrochemical hydrogen charging. Decreasing annealing temperature from 800 °C to 750 °C decreased grain sizes from 3.2 to 2.1 μm, and resulted in the σ phase formation. Interestingly, the specimen annealed at 800 °C, which had coarser grains, showed a lower hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility than the specimen annealed at 750 °C, although hydrogen-assisted intergranular fracture was observed in both annealing conditions. Because the interface between the FCC matrix and σ was more susceptible to hydrogen than the grain boundary, the presence of the matrix/σ interface significantly assisted hydrogen-induced mechanical degradation. In terms of intergranular cracking, crack growth occurred via small crack initiation near a larger crack tip and subsequent crack coalescence, which has been observed in various steels and FCC alloys that contained hydrogen.     

Combined effects of prior plastic deformation and sensitization on hydrogen embrittlement of 304 austenitic stainless steel

Austenite stainless steels (ASSs) may suffer from both cold deformation and sensitization prior to hydrogen exposure. There is scant data in literature on the combined effect of prior deformation and sensitization on the hydrogen embrittlement (HE) of ASSs. The present study investigated the combined effects of tensile plastic prestrain (PS) and 650 °C sensitization (ST) on the HE of 304 steel by hydrogen pre-charging and tensile testing. The results are explained by terms of pre-existing α′ martensite content. PS higher than 10% can enhance HE significantly by inducing severe α′ transformation prior to hydrogen exposure. Prior ST also enhances HE, but submitting the prestrained and α′-containing 304 steel to short-time ST can diminish the enhancement of HE by prestraining, as ST can cause the reversion of α′ to austenite, reducing pre-existing α′ content. It is inadvisable to make 304 steel be sensitized/welded firstly and deformed subsequently, even if the ST time is short such as what happens during welding, because this treating sequence can induce more α′ than prestraining alone, enhancing HE more significantly. Apparent hydrogen diffusivity can be related quantitatively to pre-existing α′ content, proving directly that α′ platelets can act as diffusion “highways” in ASSs. It is indicated that pre-existing α′ can enhance subsequently the HE of ASSs is because it can lead to a large amount of hydrogen entering the ASSs during hydrogen exposure by acting as diffusion “highways”. HE is enhanced by increasing hydrogen amount rather than by pre-existing α′ itself.