Modelling the test methods used to determine material compatibility for hydrogen pressure vessel service

Published

October 16, 2019

Author(s)

Christopher P. Looney, Matthew J. Connolly, Peter E. Bradley, Andrew J. Slifka, Robert L. Amaro

Abstract

Vessels used to transport pressurized gasses via truck must be approved for service by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Many of the most common, relatively small volume, pressure vessels in service are designated as DOT 3AA cylinders. The specifications for DOT 3AA cylinders are detailed in the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 49, Subtitle B, Chapter I, Part 178, Subpart C, Section 178.37- Specification 3AA. If a vessel made of steel with a tensile strength higher than 950 MPa is to be approved for gaseous hydrogen service outside of the United States, the vessel material must also be certified by use of the ISO-11114 Transportable Gas Cylinder- Compatibility of Cylinders and Valve Materials with Gas Contents standard. The specific section of interest for hydrogen service is ISO-11114-4, Test Methods for Selecting Steels Resistant to Hydrogen Embrittlement. The ISO standard allows the use of three disparate methods to certify a material for gaseous hydrogen service. This work models each of the three accepted test methods in the ISO standard, as well as a DOT 3AA cylinder, in the finite element platform ABAQUS. A large-scale cyclic plasticity constitutive model incorporating non-linear isotropic and kinematic hardening is used to determine the deformation response at areas of interest. The modeling results are then combined with a fatigue indicator parameter to compare each of the test methods to in-service conditions.

Citation

International Journal of Fatigue

Pub Type

Journals

Keywords

fracture, Hydrogen, mechanical testing, model, pressure vessel steel

Citation

Looney, C. , Connolly, M. , Bradley, P. , Slifka, A. and Amaro, R. (2019), Modelling the test methods used to determine material compatibility for hydrogen pressure vessel service, International Journal of Fatigue (Accessed May 10, 2025)