Selective and localized embrittlement of metal by cathodic hydrogenation utilizing electrochemical jet

Abstract Electrochemical jet processing (EJP) is an easy-to-implement technology for creating complex microstructures based on anodic dissolution without requiring specially designed cathodes. In this study, a new electrolyte-jet-based surface modification method based on the principle of cathodic hydrogenation, namely, electrochemical jet hydrogenation (EJH), was proposed for the first time to selectively modify the material in aspects of its brittleness. In this method, a workpiece is innovatively set as the cathode, and hydrogen evolution occurs locally on the cathode surface within the jet impinging area, leading to a localized H-treatment of the cathode material. The hydrogen-material interaction can alter the surface material property and result in localized surface modification, for example, material ductile-brittle transition by hydrogen embrittlement (HE). In this research, the proposed method was validated on niobium metal. According to the results, evident localized embrittlement was achieved, and the degree of embrittlement was precisely controlled by adjusting the electrochemical parameters mainly including current density and processing time. As a selective surface modification method, EJH can be applied as an assistive technology in hybrid machining of difficult-to-machine superalloys where localized surface modification of ductile-brittle transition is expected.