Hydrogen Embrittlement and Prevention of Industrial Components

Abstract

Hydrogen damage includes a wide range of environmental types of failure, hydrogen assisted mechanical degradation processes, and hydrogen-material interactions, including hydrogen embrittlement (HE) and material microstructural changes, caused by the presence of hydrogen in metals. Hydrogen embrittlement of iron, steel, and their alloys is extremely interesting phenomena as these materials are widely used in many industrial applications. The coexistence of different HE mechanisms and their simultaneous effects in metallic materials, including steels, is still not well documented, while recognition of the dominant mechanism, one or more, is an extremely challenging and a crucial problem [1]. The implementation of methods for evaluation, control, and prevention of hydrogen assisted mechanical degradation processes and HE in metals, as well as, development of the future practically-applicable industrial predictive model requires that the variables relevant to the application be incorporated into the basic concept that define all necessary successive steps (5-step approach) for the industrial application [2]. The global 5-step approach in prevention of hydrogen assisted mechanical degradation processes and hydrogen embrittlement in metals for the practical industrial application consists of following steps: (1) phenomenology analysis of hydrogen related degradation (multiscale modeling and simulation of HE phenomena); (2) hydrogen sources and entry into metal/component; (3) structural integrity (SiM) model and (4) predictive maintenance (PdM) model which should provide basis for future (5) reliable and accurate HE damage prediction of different industrial components.