Effect of hydrogen on tensile properties of ultrafine-grained type 310S austenitic stainless steel processed by high-pressure torsion

This study addresses a hydrogen effect on the tensile properties of a type 310S austenitic stainless steel with ultrafine-grained structures produced by high-pressure torsion (HPT) and subsequent annealing. The mean grain size was reduced to ~85 nm by the HPT processing. The grain size was increased by the post-HPT annealing, but the grain size of ~265 nm was retained after annealing at 1023 K (750 °C). The tensile strength of ~1.2 GPa, which is approximately twice as much as that of the solution-treated specimen, was attained in the 1023 K (750 °C) post-HPT-annealed specimen. The elongation to failure was restored up to ~15 pct by the post-HPT annealing, although it was still insufficient in comparison with the ~55 pct elongation of the solution-treated specimen. There was no change in the tensile strength of the HPT-processed specimens and the post-HPT-annealed specimens by hydrogen charging with the hydrogen content in the range of ~20 to 40 mass ppm. The HPT-processed and the 773 K (500 °C) post-HPT-annealed specimens exhibited a ductility loss through the fully shear type fracture. The hydrogen charge into higher temperature post-HPT-annealed specimens with σ-FeCr precipitates led to a mild hydrogen embrittlement.