Role of hydrogen in stress corrosion cracking of austenitic stainless steels

Effects of hydrogen charging on the stress corrosion cracking (SCC) behavior of 304 and 310 stainless steels under sustained load were investigated in boiling 42% MgCl₂ solution. The cracking was accelerated by the incorporation of hydrogen into the steel without altering the crack growth mechanism. The fact that the active dissolution is almost unaffected by the hydrogen charging and tensile stress indicates that the phenomenon of hydrogen-promoted SCC is unlikely a result of hydrogen-facilitated active dissolution. In contrast, hydrogen significantly promotes anodic dissolution in the potential range where the active-to-passive transition occurs. The electrochemical noise detected in the SCC process implies that the crack propagation process is discontinuous and hydrogen charging can raise the frequency of film breakdown at the crack tip. These observations suggest that the hydrogen-promoted SCC may result from the hydrogen-induced passivity degradation.     

Abnormal magnetic behaviour of powder metallurgy austenitic stainless steels sintered in nitrogen

The magnetic response of AISI 304L and AISI 316L obtained through powder metallurgy and sintered in nitrogen were studied. AISI 304L sintered in nitrogen showed a ferromagnetic behaviour in as-sintered state while AISI 316L was paramagnetic. After solution annealing both were paramagnetic. Magnetic behaviour was analysed by using a vibrating sample magnetometer, a magnetic ferritscope and magnetic etching. A microstructural characterization was performed by means of optical metallography, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive analysis of X-rays (EDS). Some samples when needed were submitted to aged heat treatments at 675 and 875 °C for 90 min, 4, 6, 8 or 48 h. The main microstructural feature found was the presence of a lamellar constituent formed by nitride precipitates and an interlamellar matrix of austenite and/or ferrite. The abnormal magnetic response was explained based on this.     

氢离子辐照纯钒中形成的位错环

钒合金作为聚变堆候选材料, 其辐照损伤行为一直是关注的重点. 研究辐照时形成的位错环的性质, 其意义在于揭示纯钒中辐照空洞的长大机理. 这种机理表现为不同类型位错环对点缺陷吸收的偏压不同, 从而影响金属的辐照肿胀. 本文利用加速器对纯钒薄膜样品进行氢离子辐照, 然后, 利用透射电镜的inside-outside方法分析氢离子辐照所形成的位错环的类型. 结果表明, 在氢离子辐照纯钒中没有发现柏氏矢量b=<110>的位错环, 只有柏氏矢量b=1/2<111>和b=<110>的位错环, 这两种位错环的惯性面处于{110}-{112}之间. 能确定性质的位错环全部为间隙型位错环, 未发现空位型位错环.     

注氢纯铝中间隙型位错环一维迁移现象的原位观察

核聚变堆材料在高能粒子辐照过程中会产生大量点缺陷,导致辐照脆性和辐照肿胀等现象.因而,研究点缺陷在辐照过程中的演变过程至关重要.点缺陷团簇的一维迁移现象是这种演变过程的主要研究内容之一.本文采用普通低压(200 kV)透射电镜,在室温条件下对注氢纯铝中的间隙型位错环在电子辐照下的一维迁移现象进行了观察和分析.在200 keV电子辐照下,注氢纯铝中的位错环可多个、同时发生一维迁移运动,也可单个、独立进行一维迁移运动.位错环沿柏氏矢量1/3<111>的方向可进行微米尺度的一维长程迁移,沿柏氏矢量1/2<110>的方向一维迁移也可达数百纳米.电子束辐照时产生的间隙原子浓度梯度是引起位错环一维迁移并决定其迁移方向的原因.位错环发生快速一维迁移时,其后会留下一条运动轨迹;位错环一维迁移的速率越快,运动的轨迹则越长,在完成迁移过后的几十秒内这些运动轨迹会逐渐消失.     

Grain refinement and strengthening of austenitic stainless steels during large strain cold rolling

The microstructure/texture evolution and strengthening of 316?L-type and 304?L-type austenitic stainless steels during cold rolling were studied. The cold rolling was accompanied by the deformation twinning and micro-shear banding followed by the strain-induced martensitic transformation, leading to nanocrystalline microstructures consisting of flattened austenite and martensite grains. The fraction of ultrafine grains can be expressed by a modified Johnson-Mehl-Avrami-Kolmogorov equation, while inverse exponential function holds as a first approximation between the mean grain size (austenite or martensite) and the total strain. The deformation austenite was characterised by the texture components of Brass, {011}<211>, Goss, {011}<100>, and S, {123}<634>, whereas the deformation martensite exhibited a strong {223}<110> texture component along with remarkable γ-fibre, <111>∥ND, with a maximum at {111}<211>. The grain refinement during cold rolling led to substantial strengthening, which could be expressed by a summation of the austenite and martensite strengthening contributions.     

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic analysis of oxidized Fe-16Cr-16Ni-2Mn-1Mo-2Si austenitic stainless steel

Depth profile analysis (argon ion etching/X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) was conducted on a series of Fe-16Cr-16Ni-2Mn-1Mo-2Si austenitic stainless steel samples oxidized at 973 and 1073 K with exposure times of 25, 100, 193, 436 and 700 h. Surface and near surface rearrangement following oxidation resulted in a region of high Cr concentration on all oxidized samples. Temperature and time dependence to O₂ penetration depth was observed. In general, O₂ penetration depth was found to increase with increasing exposure up to 436 h. No increase in depth was observed between 436 and 700 h exposure time.     

Atom probe tomography analysis of radiation-induced solute clustering in austenite stainless steels

Various types of defects are produced by the irradiation of energetic particles onto a structural material. The large number of mobile vacancies and self-interstitial atoms during irradiation induce defect fluxes and the diffusion of solute atoms in the matrix. The preferential interaction between the solute atoms and radiation-induced defects leads to the enrichment/depletion or clustering of the solutes at defect sinks. In the current work, atom probe tomography (APT) was used for the analysis of radiation-induced solute clustering in ion-irradiated austenite stainless steel 316. Quantitative analysis of the localised clustering of chemical elements was implemented and a parameter selection procedure was proposed. The number density and size distribution of Si clusters in APT specimens irradiated at various temperatures were examined. At high temperature, the number density of the clusters decreased and their size increased. The localized Si atoms in variously shaped defects were clearly identified. The APT method was demonstrated to be suitable for identifying defect structures and for the quantitative analysis of clustering in irradiated specimens.     

Precipitate assemblies formed on dislocation loops in aluminium-silver-copper alloys

The precipitation microstructure of the γ′ (AlAg₂) intermetallic phase has been examined in aluminium-silver-copper alloys. The microstructure developed in an Al-0.90at.%Ag-90at.Cu alloy was significantly different from that reported for binary Al-Ag alloys. The orientation relationship between the matrix and precipitate was unchanged; however, the γ′ phase formed assemblies with a two-dimensional, open arrangement of precipitates. Each such assembly contained two variants of the γ′ phase alternately arranged to form a faceted elliptical unit. The θ′ (Al₂Cu) phase formed on these assemblies after further ageing. Each assembly was formed via repeated precipitation of the γ′ phase on dissociated segments of a single dislocation loop. This faceted elliptical assembly has not been previously reported for the γ′ precipitate. The difference between the precipitation behaviour of the γ′ phase in Al-Ag and Al-Ag-Cu alloys was attributed to copper modifying the as-quenched defect structure of the matrix. The formation of faceted elliptical γ′ phase assemblies clarifies earlier observations on the precipitate number density and mechanical properties of aluminium-silver-copper alloys.     

Electron spectroscopic study of passive oxide layer formation on Fe-19Cr-18Ni-1Al-TiC austenitic stainless steel

Surface oxidation of a TiC-enriched austenitic stainless steel alloy was investigated at 50 °C by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). It was found that a passive oxide layer started to form on the alloy surface after 5 L of oxygen exposure. Further oxidation of the alloy was suppressed after 500 L of oxygen exposure when a stable passive layer was formed. It was found also that Ti and Ni did not oxidize and Ti remained in a carbide form during whole oxidation. The oxidation kinetics of different metals were investigated as well.     

Effect of hydrogen on interatomic bonds in austenitic steels

Mössbauer spectroscopy was used to investigate the influence of dissolved hydrogen on the interatomic bonds in austenitic steels. It was carried out to prove the decohesion mechanism of hydrogen embrittlement (HE). It is shown that hydrogen increases Debye temperature, i.e., the interatomic bonds in hydrogenated austenitic steel becomes stronger.     

Evolution of magnetic phase at low aging temperature in a heavily cold-drawn stainless steel fiber

The evolution of the magnetic phase upon aging at 300–520 °C in a heavily cold-drawn AISI 316L austenitic stainless steel fiber was studied using thermomagnetic analysis (TMA) and magnetic force microscopy with a heating stage. An increasing trend of magnetization from 50 °C to around 470 °C in the heating curves of TMA in austenitic stainless steels after a cold-drawing process was observed. No significant M_s temperature signal in the TMA curve at cooling indicated an increase in magnetization upon cooling period without significant phase transformation. A series of in situ magnetic force microscopy observations reveal a growth of the magnetic domain structure after aging at 300 °C for 2.5 h. Results show that the ferromagnetic increase during aging at lower annealing temperature resulted from the growth of martensite.     

Behavior of structure defects and hydrogen in neutron-irradiated stainless steels studied by positron annihilation method

Measurements of angular distributions of annihilation photons are applied to investigating structural defects and hydrogen behavior in annealed, plastically deformed, and irradiated stainless steels. It is determined that the whole cycle of investigations performed by positron diagnostics helped in tracing the formation and evolution of the defect structure and hydrogen behavior in different kinds of steels being subjected to complex physical–mechanical influences such as plastic deformation, hydrogenation and irradiation by fission neutrons. The high sensitivity of the electron–positron annihilation method allowed understanding even of details of the changes of the crystalline structure of multi-component materials.     

强流脉冲离子束辐照对不锈钢耐腐蚀性能的影响

利用强流脉冲离子束（HIPIB）对316L不锈钢进行了表面辐照处理,研究了HIPIB辐照对其在0.5mol/L H2SO4溶液中电化学腐蚀性能的影响。极化曲线测量结果表明,HIPIB辐照能够显著提高316L的抗腐蚀性能,自腐蚀电流对辐照次数的依赖性与自腐蚀电位相比明显较强。采用扫描电子显微镜（SEM）、X射线衍射（XRD）和电子探针（EPMA）分析辐照后试样表面形貌、表面层相结构和元素分布的变化。结果表明：HIPIB辐照使试样表面光滑化,表面层产生择优取向,且发生了杂质元素的选择性烧蚀,是316L不锈钢耐电化学腐蚀性能得以提高的主要原因。     

利用透射电镜衬度像变化判定位错环类型及注氢纯铁中形成的位错环分析

本文分两部分,第一部分研究了利用透射电镜衬度像变化判定材料中位错环类型的方法,即采用所谓inside-outside方法来判断位错环为空位型位错环或间隙型位错环. 第二部分讨论了加速器注氢纯铁在673—773 K时效后形成的位错环的类型. 关键词： 透射电镜 空位型位错环 间隙型位错环 氢     

Dislocation dynamics simulations with climb: kinetics of dislocation loop coarsening controlled by bulk diffusion

Dislocation climb mobilities, assuming vacancy bulk diffusion, are derived and implemented in dislocation dynamics simulations to study the coarsening of vacancy prismatic loops in fcc metals. When loops cannot glide, comparison of the simulations with a coarsening model based on the line tension approximation shows good agreement. Dislocation dynamics simulations with both glide and climb are then performed. Allowing for glide of the loops along their prismatic cylinders leads to faster coarsening kinetics, as direct coalescence of the loops is now possible.     

Copper indium diselenide: crystallography and radiation-induced dislocation loops

Copper indium diselenide (CIS) is a prime candidate as the absorber layer in solar cells for use in extraterrestrial environments due to its good photovoltaic efficiency and ability to resist radiation damage. While CIS-based devices have been tested extensively in the laboratory using electron and proton irradiation, there is still little understanding of the underlying mechanisms which give rise to its radiation hardness. To gain better insight into the response of CIS to displacing radiation, transmission electron microscope samples have been irradiated in situ with 400?keV Xe ions at the Intermediate Voltage Electron Microscope facility at Argonne National Laboratory, USA. At room temperature, dislocation loops were observed to form and grow with increasing fluence. These loops have been investigated using g ?·? b techniques and inside/outside contrast analysis. They have been found to reside on {112} planes and to be interstitial in nature. The Burgers vector were calculated as b ?=?1/6 ?221?. The compositional content of these interstitial loops was found to be indistinguishable from the surrounding matrix within the sensitivity of the techniques used. To facilitate this work, experimental electron-diffraction zone-axis pattern maps were produced and these are also presented, along with analysis of the [100] zone-axis pattern.     

Evaluation of irradiation-induced creep rate: application to the vacancy dislocation loop contribution

Irradiation (as in a nuclear reactor) drastically affects the defect structure and its time evolution in a material, and induces new creep mechanisms in it. We present a formalism to evaluate the contribution to creep owing to such mechanisms. Beginning with the phenomenological constitutive relation for the strain appropriate to a given mechanism, we put in simple statistical considerations to derive an expression for the corresponding creep rate. This formal expression is in terms of the defect production rate and a non-equilibrium probability distribution function involving the pertinent properties of the defect type concerned. A convenient approximation scheme for practical calculations is employed, that also makes contact with standard rate theory and provides a proper interpretation for the variables occurring there. As an illustration, we evaluate the contribution to irradiation-induced creep from the orientation-dependent shrinkage of vacancy dislocation loops in an applied stress field. The circumstances inducing transient and non-transient creep are clarified and a numerical estimate is given for the latter component.