IN SITU ANALYSES OF HYDROGEN EMBRITTLEMENT OF AISI 316L STAINLESS STEEL USING SYNCHROTRON RADIATION

HOYOS J.J; SEGUI, S.; GERVASONI, J.L.

Mar del Plata

Otro; XVIII Reunión Anual de la Asociación Argentina de Cristalografía; 2023

Asociación Argentina de Cristalografía

The austenitic stainless steel (ASS) 316L is a modified ultra-low carbon alloy based on the Fe-Cr-Ni-Mo system, which is suitable for applications in corrosive environments requiring high mechanical strength. It has been widely employed for structural and high-pressure applications, such as chemical and petrochemical process, heat exchangers, and nuclear applications. Nevertheless, it could undergo hydrogen embrittlement when exposed to hydrogen. Therefore, it is necessary to have a better understanding of the phenomena involved in hydrogen embrittlement. In this work, the influence of hydrogen on the martensitic transformation and lattice strain in ASS 316L was assessed. For this, both hydrogenated and non-hydrogenated specimens of AISI 316L were tested by simultaneous uniaxial tensile tests and X-ray diffraction measurements at room temperature, with an energy of 8 KeV. In addition, the specimens were hydrogenated at room temperature for 7 days in a solution of 0.1 M H2SO4 + 10 mgL-1 As2O3, with an intensity current of 20 mA/cm2. For these conditions, it was found that hydrogen does not have a significant effect on neither martensitic transformation nor austenite lattice microstrain near to the surface. Consequently, the influence of hydrogen on the mechanical properties cannot be deemed significant.