The influence of hydrogen permeation on the protection performance of the Cu coating of nuclear waste containers

Hydrogen permeation and corrosion behaviour of Cu-coated carbon steel under simulated nuclear waste disposal conditions of the Beishan area have been investigated. The permeation current (with −500 μA·cm−2 charging current) decreased from 3778 to 141 and 47 nA.cm−2 respectively when 5 and 10 µm thick Cu coatings were electrodeposited on the steel. The XRD analysis suggests the formation of CuH during the hydrogen charging treatment, and its subsequent decomposition formed a protective CuOH/Cu2O layer on the charging surface when exposed to simulated groundwater for 44 h. No damage to the Cu coating-steel interface was observed in the cross-section analysis.