Hydrogen Permeation Behavior of QP1180 High Strength Steel in Simulated Coastal Atmosphere

The hydrogen permeation behavior of QP1180 high strength steel for automobile was studied in simulate coastal atmosphere environment by using Devanathan-Stachurski dual electrolytic cell, the cyclic corrosion test (CCT), thermal desorption spectrometry (TDS) and electrochemical measurement methods. The current density of hydrogen permeation generally increases with reducing the relative humidity from 95% to 50% and periodically changes in the CCT process. These mainly result from the evolution of corrosion and rust layer on the specimen surface with the atmospheric humidity and intermittent salt spraying. The contents of diffusible hydrogen and non-diffusible hydrogen in the steel enlarge slightly in the CCT process. The plastic deformation about 11.3% results in much higher diffusible hydrogen content in steel, but noticeably reduces the hydrogen permeation current and almost has no influence on the non-diffusible hydrogen content. The combination of double electrolytic cell and standard cyclic corrosion test can effectively characterize the hydrogen permeation of high strength steel in atmospheric service environments.