Abstract
Considering the vast number of articles that have been published during the last 150 years related to hydrogen embrittlement and the multiple attempts to explain the governing mechanisms, it is evident that hydrogen’s effect on mechanical properties in steel is still a controversial topic. This little atom has even by some authors been referred to as the “little devil”. We do not intend to explore this particular description of hydrogen any further. However, we would like to shed some light on the key technical aspects we believe need to be further scrutinized and understood to ensure that the decision-makers have sufficiently reliable data available to decide whether hydrogen gas can be safely transported in new or existing offshore pipelines at an acceptable cost.
