In situ small-scale hydrogen embrittlement testing made easy: An electrolyte for preserving surface integrity at nano-scale during hydrogen charging

Tarlan Hajilou*, Malin S.B. Hope, Amin H. Zavieh, Nousha Kheradmand, Roy Johnsen, Afrooz Barnoush

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

21 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

An electrolyte for electrochemical hydrogen charging of corrosion-susceptible alloys is developed, which preserves the surface integrity at nano-scale by minimizing the surface roughness alternation. To assure the formation and adsorption of the hydrogen from the electrolyte, permeation tests were performed on Fe 3 wt%Si ferritic steel. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy method was used to check the effect of the glycerol-based solution on the chemical composition of the sample surface. The surface analysis revealed minimal chemical and topography alteration on the surface after different electrochemical treatments. Various types of in situ small-scale mechanical tests such as nano-indentation, micro-pillar compression, and micro-cantilever bending tests were performed inside this electrolyte while the samples being charged with hydrogen under cathodic potential. These small-scale mechanical tests showed that the solution facilitates studying hydrogen embrittlement in nano- or micro-scale.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)12516-12529
Number of pages14
JournalInternational Journal of Hydrogen Energy
Volume43
Issue number27
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 5 Jul 2018
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Electrochemistry
  • Hydrogen diffusion
  • Hydrogen-assisted cracking
  • Micromechanical
  • Nano-indentation

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