Developing Multielemental Hydrogen Embrittlement-Resistant Coatings for Hydrogen Energy Systems
Supervisor: Dr. Amir Mirzaei
Project Description (Abstract):
As hydrogen fuel demand continues to grow, the hydrogen energy infrastructure is increasingly exposed to high-pressure hydrogen environments, making it vulnerable to hydrogen embrittlement (HE), a critical phenomenon in materials that leads to subcritical crack growth, fracture initiation, loss of ductility, toughness, and strength, and catastrophic failure. To mitigate HE risks in hydrogen energy systems, developing HE-resistant materials is essential.
This project aims to investigate HE mechanisms and develop innovative coatings to address the strength-ductility trade-off in materials used for hydrogen storage and transfer. With the support of our collaborators and computational team, we will systematically select elements for high-entropy materials (HEMs) that have a strong tendency to form densely packed atomic structures (e.g., FCC and HCP), expected to enhance resistance to HE. Additionally, the sputtering deposition process will be optimized to reduce lattice defects, further improving the coating's HE resistance. The fabricated films will be characterized and tested using advanced equipment at the Western Nanofabrication Facility, Surface Science Western (which hosts some of Canada’s most unique tools), and Interface Science Western, home to the Tandetron Accelerator Facility.
