To problem of hydrogen embrittlement of steel at droplet impingement erosion

Introduction. The work is devoted to the problem of the hydrogen saturation of steel parts skin at their high-speed impacts with a water-drop flow. A hypothesis of the water molecules dissociation at high-speed drop impacts was suggested in a number of papers. This hypothesis was confirmed by some experimental data. The effect of this dissociation is hydrogen embrittlement of the metal surface layer. The work objective is the calculation and experimental verification of the given mechanism of the erosion destruction of the steel surface. Materials and Methods. Energy equations of various ways of the water molecules dissociation are considered for the calculation-analytical estimates. The Tate and van der Waals equations are used with allowance for the change in the phase states of water at impact. Experimental data are obtained on the basis of spectral analysis using visible monochromatic (qualitative analysis) and infrared (quantitative analysis) emissions. Research Results. An improved calculation apparatus is proposed to determine the energy level of the water molecules dissociation and free hydrogen release with account for the compressibility of water at achievable impact speeds. The results of spectral studies of bubble tracks formed on the experimental steel samples under the bench erosion tests are presented. The spectral analysis shows that the tracks are composed of air bubbles. Free hydrogen is not detected in them. Discussion and Conclusions. The calculated and experimental data obtained in this paper do not give grounds for confirming the hypothesis of hydrogen dissociation under the water-drop impacts with a steel surface in the impact velocity range of 200-600 m / s. Therefore, the mechanism of hydrogen embrittlement, apparently, should be excluded from the number of additive components of the droplet impingement erosive wear.