The near elimination of hysteresis in Pd/Cr2O3 composites

Although its value varies with microstructure, hysteresis always accompanies hydride formation and decomposition in Pd, e.g., it is present even in nano-crystalline and thin films. Internal oxidation of Pd0.93Cr0.07 alloys leads to a pure Pd matrix containing nano-crystalline chromia precipitates. It is found that the characteristic hysteresis disappears in this composite of Pd at elevated temperatures and is quite small at moderate temperatures compared to pure Pd. Some possible reasons for this are discussed.