THE BEHAVIOR OF AISI-304 AUSTENITIC STAINLESS-STEEL UNDER TRACTION DURING HYDROGEN DISCHARGE

The examination of the interation of hydrogen with steels by means of the prematured fracture method allowed us to ascertain that upon increasing the time of hydrogen precharge the material passes through a condition of fragilization and then returns to toughness values. In order to study these interactions further, a new study methodology has been developed which foresees the continuous discharge of hydrogen during the traction of the test piece (traction under hydrogen discharge). AISI 304 stainless steel was used in this first series of tests. After the test all the test pieces were examined by SEM. The results showed that variations in behavior in elastic limits and strain-hardening fields are sharply accentuated when traction during hydrogen discharge takes place. © 1990.