Hydrogen trapping in high-strength steels

AbstractThe martensitic advanced high-strength steels (MS-AHSS) are used to create fuel-efficient, crashworthy cars. Hydrogen embrittlement (HE) is an issue with high-strength steels; thus, the interaction of hydrogen with MS-AHSS needs to be studied. There are only a few published works on the HE of MS-AHSS. The current literature indicates that the HE susceptibility of MS-AHSS is affected by (i) the strength of the steel, (ii) the applied strain rate, (iii) the concentration of hydrogen, (iv) microstructure, (v) tempering, (vi) residual stress, (vii) fabrication route, (viii) inclusions, (ix) metallic coatings, and (x) specific precipitates. Some of the unresolved issues include (i) the correlation of laboratory results to service performance, (ii) establishing the conditions or factors that lead to a certain HE response, (iii) studying the effect of stress rate on HE, and (iv) a comprehensive understanding of hydrogen trapping in MS-AHSS.

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Chemical heterogeneity enhances hydrogen resistance in high-strength steels

Nature Materials ◽

10.1038/s41563-021-01050-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Binhan Sun ◽

Wenjun Lu ◽

Baptiste Gault ◽

Ran Ding ◽

Surendra Kumar Makineni ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hydrogen Embrittlement ◽

Thermomechanical Processing ◽

High Strength Steels ◽

High Strength ◽

High Dispersion ◽

Chemical Heterogeneity ◽

Hydrogen Trapping ◽

Strength And Ductility ◽

Embrittlement Resistance ◽

Hydrogen Embrittlement Resistance

AbstractThe antagonism between strength and resistance to hydrogen embrittlement in metallic materials is an intrinsic obstacle to the design of lightweight yet reliable structural components operated in hydrogen-containing environments. Economical and scalable microstructural solutions to this challenge must be found. Here, we introduce a counterintuitive strategy to exploit the typically undesired chemical heterogeneity within the material’s microstructure that enables local enhancement of crack resistance and local hydrogen trapping. We use this approach in a manganese-containing high-strength steel and produce a high dispersion of manganese-rich zones within the microstructure. These solute-rich buffer regions allow for local micro-tuning of the phase stability, arresting hydrogen-induced microcracks and thus interrupting the percolation of hydrogen-assisted damage. This results in a superior hydrogen embrittlement resistance (better by a factor of two) without sacrificing the material’s strength and ductility. The strategy of exploiting chemical heterogeneities, rather than avoiding them, broadens the horizon for microstructure engineering via advanced thermomechanical processing.

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Evaluation of hydrogen trapping in high strength steels by thermal desorption spectroscopy

Materials Science and Engineering A ◽

10.1016/j.msea.2012.04.078 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 551 ◽

pp. 50-58 ◽

Cited By ~ 67

Author(s):

D. Pérez Escobar ◽

K. Verbeken ◽

L. Duprez ◽

M. Verhaege

Keyword(s):

Thermal Desorption ◽

High Strength Steels ◽

Thermal Desorption Spectroscopy ◽

High Strength ◽

Hydrogen Trapping

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Hydrogen Trapping in Some Automotive Martensitic Advanced High-Strength Steels

Advanced Engineering Materials ◽

10.1002/adem.201700468 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

pp. 1700468 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Jeffrey Venezuela ◽

Qingjun Zhou ◽

Qinglong Liu ◽

Mingxing Zhang ◽

Andrej Atrens

Keyword(s):

High Strength Steels ◽

High Strength ◽

Hydrogen Trapping ◽

Advanced High Strength Steels

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Ultra-Low Hydrogen Consumables for Welding of High Strength Steels With 690–750 MPa-Yield Strength

Volume 3: Safety and Reliability; Materials Technology; Douglas Faulkner Symposium on Reliability and Ultimate Strength of Marine Structures ◽

10.1115/omae2006-92633 ◽

2006 ◽

Author(s):

Stephen Liu ◽

Craig Clasper ◽

Keith Moline ◽

Joe Scott

Keyword(s):

Yield Strength ◽

Weld Metal ◽

Oxygen Potential ◽

Mechanical Performance ◽

Hydrogen Reduction ◽

High Strength Steels ◽

High Strength ◽

Testing Temperature ◽

Hydrogen Trapping ◽

Welding Consumable

Two fundamental concepts in welding consumable development were explored in this research. The first concept dealt with the introduction of yttrium-containing oxides into the weld metal for microstructural control and hydrogen trapping. The second concept suggested the use of fluoride species to displace hydrogen from the arc. Combining yttrium and fluorides into one single flux-cored consumable to capture the benefit of hydrogen reduction from both ingredients, however, proved to be difficult. The oxygen potential controlled by yttrium clashed with the fluorine potential controlled by KF. Several iterations led to the successful reconciliation of the oxygen potential and fluorine potential and the development of a new generation of flux-cored consumables with exceptional performance. Using CO2 as shielding gas, these consumables successfully produced welds that contained only 0.6 ml H2/100 g weld metal. With a duplex martensite-acicular ferrite microstructure, a weld metal with yield strength of 99 ksi and tensile strength of 108 ksi was obtained. The weld metal exhibited excellent ductility, 21.8% elongation. Impact toughness exceeded the −60 °F requirement by 88%, reaching values of 76 ft-lb. Charpy-V-notch energy at 0 °F testing temperature measured an outstanding average of 89 ft-lbs. Consumables designed using the two fundamental concepts have demonstrated great capability of producing high strength steel welds that met stringent mechanical performance requirements.

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Hydrogen Embrittlement and Hydrogen Trapping Behaviour in Advanced High Strength Steels

Materials Science Forum ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/msf.1016.1344 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 1016 ◽

pp. 1344-1349

Author(s):

Ali Smith

Keyword(s):

Hydrogen Embrittlement ◽

Retained Austenite ◽

Hydrogen Diffusion ◽

Hydrogen Permeation ◽

High Strength Steels ◽

High Strength ◽

Hydrogen Trapping ◽

Austenite Matrix ◽

Advanced High Strength Steels ◽

Step Loading

Modern advanced high strength steels (AHSS) for the automotive sector often contain retained austenite which promotes remarkable combinations of strength and ductility. These high strength steels may however be subject to a risk of hydrogen embrittlement. For the current contribution, hydrogen trapping and embrittlement behaviour were investigated in AHSS compositions having different levels of retained austenite. Hydrogen permeation tests revealed that hydrogen diffusion was slower for increased levels of retained austenite, being controlled most likely by reversible trapping at austenite-matrix interfaces. External hydrogen embrittlement tests via step loading also revealed that resistance to hydrogen was lower for increased levels of retained austenite. It was suggested that during step loading the hydrogen accumulated at austenite-matrix interfaces, leading to cracking when the applied stress was high enough.

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