HYDROGEN ENHANCED THERMAL FATIGUE OF GAMMA-TITANIUM ALUMINIDE

A study of hydrogen enhanced thermal fatigue cracking was carried out for a gamma-based Ti-48Al-2Cr alloy by cycling between room temperature and 750 or 900 °C. The results showed that hydrogen can severely attack the gamma alloy, with resulting lifetimes as low as three cycles, while no failures were observed in helium for test durations of over 4000 cycles. The severity of hydrogen attack strongly depends on the upper limit of the temperature cycled and the cleanliness of the hydrogen. Specifically, the large scatter of life times at 750 °C (ranging from 36 to more than 3000 cycles) have resulted from the competition between surface oxidation and hydrogen attack. The results suggest that an understanding of the combined actions of thermal cycling and hydrogen degradation is needed for assessing materials for high temperature applications in hydrogen. © 1995.