Triboemission of gases from iron and construction steel: The effect of surface conditions

Phenomenon of gas triboemission has been used for characterisation of hydrogen content in construction steel under real-life conditions. The effect of surface layers on steel resulting from exposure to concrete pore solution, sea water, etc. on kinetics and behaviour of gas emission were investigated. The contribution to the gas emission from loose oxide layer was insignificant, but it enhanced the rate of gas emission because of more severe abrasion. For the samples with a dense layer both the layer and the base material contributed to gas emission. The results were qualitatively interpreted in the frameworks of a phenomenological model that describes triboemission as convolution of characteristic function of MSGE and the rate of new material involvement in deformation process.