Strength of Alloys Based on Iron, Nickel, and Titanium in High-Pressure Hydrogen

The influence of high-pressure hydrogen at room temperature on the static and fatigue properties of corrosion-resistant materials based on iron and nickel is compared for different types of loads. The sequence of characteristics can be arranged in the order of increase in the influence of hydrogen as follows: fatigue limit, ultimate strength of specimens with concentrators, relative elongation of smooth specimens, fracture pressure for a membrane under biaxial tension, percentage reduction of the area of smooth specimens, percentage reduction of the area of specimens with concentrators, and low-cycle durability. The dependences of the intensities of true stresses on the intensities of true strains (in uniaxial and biaxial tension) reveal the difference between the curves plotted in air and in hydrogen. The diagrams of hydrogen resistance taking into account the strain rates are presented. The sequence of investigated types of steel and alloys can be arranged in order of decrease in the low-cycle hydrogen resistance as follows: annealed stable austenitic and iron-nickel alloys, nitrided Cr-Ni-Mn steels, titanium alloys of the Ti-Al-Sn and Ti - Al -V systems, steels with nonstabilized austenite, high nickel alloys, maraging steels, and ferritic steels. The micromechanism of hydrogen fracture is characterized by the presence of a great number of microstructural fracture sites (bulk damage) and the completeness of local plastic relaxation. New procedures aimed at increasing the hydrogen resistance of steels and alloys are proposed, namely, the thermocyclic annealing with shot-term overheating, additional compression (with an optimal value of about 20%), and changing the temperature of aging.