Hydrogen emission in fatigue process of hydrogen-charged austenitic stainless steels

The acceleration of hydrogen diffusion in the fatigue process of AISI type 304 and 316L meta-stable austenitic stainless steels was studied by paying attention to the relation between fatigue slip bands and hydrogen emission. Slip bands were formed in tension-compression fatigue tests of round specimens in ambient air, and then the specimens were cathodically charged with hydrogen. The location of hydrogen emission was microscopically visualized by means of the hydrogen microprint technique (HMT). Hydrogen was mainly emitted from slip bands on the surface of fatigued specimens. The depth of hydrogen diffusion into the specimens was also observed on the fatigue fracture surfaces by the HMT. The depth for a specimen hydrogen-charged before fatigue testing was about 50 μm at a maximum, whereas the depth for a specimen that was hydrogen-charged after slip bands had been formed in a preliminary fatigue test was about 300 μm. Those results suggested that slip bands act as a pathway where hydrogen will move preferentially.