Mesoscale modeling of hydrogen-assisted cracking in duplex stainless steels

Quite a number of numerical models for hydrogen-assisted cracking in different kind of steels are existing reaching from simple analytical models to more complex two- and three-dimensional finite element simulations. These numerical models have been used to simulate the processes of hydrogen-assisted cracking in homogeneous microstructure. This paper contributes to numerical simulation of hydrogen-assisted cracking in heterogeneous microstructure, e.g., in a duplex stainless steel microstructure consisting of two phase fractions. If hydrogen is absorbed during welding or during service, i.e., due to cathodic protection, hydrogen is leading to material embrittlement and leads to hydrogen-assisted cracking. In order to improve understanding of the mechanisms of hydrogen-assisted cracking in duplex stainless steels, a numerical model has been created that operates at the mesoscale and enables simulation of stress–strain distribution as well as cracking in the various phases of a metallic material. Stress–strain distribution and hydrogen-assisted cracking in the duplex stainless steel 1.4462, consisting of approximately equal portions of ferrite and austenite, was simulated using the finite element program ANSYS. It was shown by numerical simulation that higher local stresses and strains are present at ferrite and austenite than the global stresses and strains in the duplex stainless steel, while the highest plastic deformations occur at austenite and the highest stresses can be found in small ferrite bars surrounded by ductile austenitic islands. By analyzing the stress–strain distribution in the duplex microstructure, crack critical areas in the ferrite can be identified. Hydrogen-assisted cracking was modeled assuming high hydrogen concentrations and regarding the local mechanical load in each phase of the duplex stainless steel. The mesoscale model qualitatively reflects the crack initiation and propagation process in the ferritic and austenitic phase of the duplex stainless steel.