Session: Gaseous Hydrogen Embrittlement (Part I of II)
Safe Hydrogen Storage: Multi-parameter Criteria for Fatigue Life and Material Selection (C2026-00042)
Tuesday, March 17, 2026
8:00 AM - 8:30 AM Central
Location: 381 AB
Earn .5 PDH
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The integrity of materials used for hydrogen gas storage is essential for the safe and reliable deployment of hydrogen as a clean energy source. This work outlines a methodology for estimating the fatigue lifetime of seamless steel pipes exposed to hydrogen environments, focusing on the role of material selection. Two design philosophies are considered: Damage Tolerant Design, which assumes initial flaws and uses fracture mechanics, and Safe-Life Design, which assumes flawless components and relies on S-N curves. The proposed approach combines non-destructive evaluation of surface imperfections with assessments of material resistance to hydrogen stress cracking and hydrogen-enhanced fatigue in hydrogen gas environment. Investigations reveal that fracture toughness has minimal influence on fatigue life across different steel grades. However, in Damage-Tolerant Design, fracture toughness becomes a critical property to meet leak-before-break criteria according to ASME BPVC VIII.3, ensuring structural safety for Fail-Safe Design. Consequently, the materials selection must be guided by a multi-parameter evaluation, integrating fatigue performance, hydrogen compatibility, and compliance with fracture mechanics-based safety criteria, to ensure long-term reliability of hydrogen storage systems.
