Abstract
The effects of temperature on hydrogen assisted fatigue crack propagation are investigated in three steels in the low-to-medium strength range; a low alloy structural steel, a super duplex stainless steel, and a super ferritic stainless steel. Significant enhancement of crack growth rates is observed in hydrogen gas at atmospheric pressure in all three materials. Failure occurs via a mechanism of time independent, transgranular, cyclic cleavage over a frequency range of 0.1-5 Hz. Increasing the temperature in hydrogen up to 80°C markedly reduces the degree of embrittlement in the structural and super ferritic steels. No such effect is observed in the duplex stainless steel until the temperature exceeds 120°C. The temperature response may be understood by considering the interaction between absorbed hydrogen and micro-structural traps, which are generated in the zone of intense plastic deformation ahead of the fatigue crack tip. © 1992.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 2059-2068 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Journal | Acta Metallurgica et Materialia |
| Volume | 40 |
| Issue number | 8 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Aug 1992 |
Keywords
- crack propagation
- fatigue of materials
- Hydrogen embrittlement
- stainless steel
- hydrogen assisted fatigue crack propagation thermal effects
- low alloy structural steel
- super duplex stainless steel
- super ferritic stainless steel