Abstract
The macroscopic features of hydrogen-induced static fatigue have been identified. The process is one of crack initiation and slow crack growth, followed by cataclysmic crack propagation (fracture). An electrical resistance method was developed to permit analysis of the crack growth kinetics. Specimens containing a high hydrogen concentration in the surface layers were examined. Three distinct stages of crack growth were identified. The first stage was characteristic of crack growth through a pre-existent hydrogen-rich region (surface layer), while the second stage was associated with the gross inward diffusion of hydrogen. The third stage was associated with imminent fracture.
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TP 4285E. Manuscript, Sept. 15, 1955. New York Meeting, February 1956.
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Barnett, W.J., Troiano, A.R. Crack propagation in the hydrogen-induced brittle fracture of steel. JOM 9, 486–494 (1957). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03397905
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03397905