The current global energy transition has raised the need for materials that ensure safe, reliable, and durable operation in hydrogen gas (H2) infrastructure and applications. In Europe, the EU Hydrogen Strategy and the European Green Deal demand a rapid scale-up of hydrogen gas infrastructure, which covers H2 production, storage, transport and use.
Stainless steels, particularly austenitic stainless steel grades, are already widely utilized in H2 technologies due to their excellent mechanical strength and corrosion resistance.
The TRANSFER project aims to develop metallurgical solutions tailored to the demands of hydrogen infrastructure by focusing on two key stainless steels families: austenitic and martensitic. The main goal is to deliver sustainable and high-performance components for critical hydrogen applications, using additive manufacturing (AM) technologies, particularly Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB) and Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing (WAAM), benchmarking them against conventional steelmaking.
To achieve this ambition and go beyond the state of the art, the project focuses on two applications with dedicated targets:
- Gas Turbine Fuel Nozzles: operating in high/low temperature cycles, low mechanical load environments where austenitic stainless steels are most suitable. TRANSFER aims to maintain formability of 316L while improving strength and H-resistance through optimized microstructures enabled by AM.
- Compressor centrifugal impeller: Subjected to cyclic mechanical loading – dependent on the hydrogen source and scheduled machine stops – as well as high centrifugal stress, where martensitic stainless steels are required. The goal is to, by AM, achieve an improvement in resistance to hydrogen-assisted fatigue crack growth compared to 316L, while preserving good formability and processability.
TRANSFER aims to develop tailored austenitic and martensitic steel grades adapted to the specific requirements of each application. This approach ensures optimal performance, durability, and economic competitiveness across the hydrogen value chain
Participants
| SWERIM | RISE : Research Institutes of Sweden |
| Outokumpu | Ugitech |
| French Corrosion Institute | Baker Hughes |
Learn more
Website : https://www.swerim.se/en/transfer
This project is co-funded by the European Union in the frame of the RFCS (Research Fund for Coal and Steel) program
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The views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the RFCS. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.