Hydrogen assisted cracking (HAC) has been investigated in a high strength 4140 steel and a low strength AISI-SAE grade 1022 steel (supplied by Amoco, Naperville, IL—now BP), charged at in 1N and tested under three-point-bend decreasing load. The HAC growth rate for the 1022 steel was found to be approximately two orders of magnitude slower than that of the 4140 steel , while the threshold stress intensity factor for the 1022 steel was significantly higher than that of the 4140 steel . This research develops an analytical model, based on the hypothesis that hydrogen both reduces crack resistance and increases crack driving force , to explain HAC in 4140 and 1022 steels. The model predicts the hydrogen concentration required to initiate HAC as a function of the applied stress intensity factor and yield strength of the steel. Hydrogen-induced reduction in was found to dominate HAC in the 4140 steel, while hydrogen-induced reduction in was combined with an increase in for HAC cracking of the 1022 steel.
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