Determination of the hydrogen site occupation in the α phase of zirconium hydride and in the α and β phases of titanium hydride by inelastic neutron scattering

Solute hydrogen and hydride phase implications on the plasticity of zirconium and titanium alloys: a review and some recent advances

In this contribution, we propose a review of the possible implications of hydrogen on mechanical behaviour of Zr and Ti alloys with emphasis on the mechanisms of plasticity and strain hardening. Recent advances on the impact of oxygen and hydrogen on the activation volume show that oxygen content hinders creep but hydrogen partially screens this effect. Both aspects are discussed in terms of a locking-unlocking model of the screw dislocation mobility in prismatic slip. Additionally, possible extension of this behaviour is suggested for the [Formula: see text] pyramidal slip. The low hydrogen solubility in both Zr and Ti leads in many cases to hydride precipitation. The nature of these phases depends on the hydrogen content and can show crystallographic orientation relationships with the hexagonal compact structure of the alloys. Some advances on the thermal stability of these phases are illustrated and discussed in relation with the deepening of the misfit dislocations. Under tensile loading, we showed that hydrides enhance the hardening process in relation with internal stress due to strain incompatibilities between the Zr and Ti matrix and hydride phases. Different plastic yielding processes of hydrides were identified, which progressively reduce these strain incompatibilities.This article is part of the themed issue 'The challenges of hydrogen and metals'.

H in α-Zr and in zirconium hydrides: solubility, effect on dimensional changes, and the role of defects

Structural, thermodynamic and elastic properties of the hydrogen-zirconium system including all major hydrides are studied from first principles. Interstitial hydrogen atoms occupy preferentially tetrahedral sites. The calculations show that a single vacancy in α-Zr can trap up to nine hydrogen atoms. Self-interstitial Zr atoms attract hydrogen to a lesser extent. Accumulation of hydrogen atoms near self-interstitials may become a nucleation site for hydrides. By including the temperature-dependent terms of the free energy based on ab initio calculations, hydrogen adsorption isotherms are computed and shown to be in good agreement with experimental data. The solubility of hydrogen decreases in Zr under compressive strain. The volume dependence on hydrogen concentration is similar for hydrogen in solution and in hydrides. The bulk modulus increases with hydrogen concentration from 96 to 132 GPa.

Understanding composition–property relationships in Ti–Cr–V–Mo alloys for optimisation of hydrogen storage in pressurised tanks

Neutron and X-ray powder diffraction have been used together with inelastic neutron scattering and DFT calculations in order to understand how the composition of two metal alloys can be altered in order to tune their hydrogen storage properties.

First-principles study of diffusion and interactions of vacancies and hydrogen in hcp-titanium

We present a study of the stability of n-vacancies (V (n)) and hydrogens in the hexagonal close-packed titanium system computed by means of first-principles calculations. In this work, performed by using the generalized gradient approximation of density functional theory, we focused on the formation energies and the processes of migration of these defects. In the first part, the calculated formation energy of the monovacancy presents a disagreement with experimental data, as already mentioned in the literature. The activation energy is underestimated by almost 20%. The stability of compact divacancies was then studied. We show that a divacancy is more stable than a monovacancy if their migration energies are of the same order of magnitude. We also predict that the migration process in the basal plane of the divacancy is controlled by an intermediate state corresponding to a body-centered triangle (BO site). The case of the trivacancies is finally considered from an energetic point of view. In the second part, the insertion of hydrogen and the processes of its migration are discussed. We obtain a satisfactory agreement with experimental measurements. The chemical nature of the interactions between hydrogen and titanium are discussed, and we show that the H-atom presents an anionic behavior in the metal. The trapping energy of hydrogen in a monovacancy as a function of the number of hydrogen atoms is finally presented.

Identification and characterization of a new zirconium hydride

Zirconium alloys are currently used in nuclear power plants where they are susceptible to hydrogen pick-up. Hydride precipitation may occur when the hydrogen solubility limit is reached. Various Zr hydride phases, gamma, delta and epsilon have been identified since the 1950s. Combining electron precession microdiffraction, electron energy loss spectroscopy and ab initio electronic calculations, a new Zr hydride named zeta has been identified and characterized. It belongs to the trigonal crystal system with space group P3 m1 and it is fully coherent with the alphaZr matrix.