The hydrogen permeation behavior of Cu–15vol%Nb and Cu–20vol%Nb alloys which were developed originally for superconducting wires was investigated. Both the alloys with a microstructure consisting of body-centered cubic Nb filaments and a face-centered cubic Cu matrix exhibited a hydrogen permeability of about 2 x 10−9mol/ms√Pa5 at 673K. The samples tested were resistant to hydrogen embrittlement despite the fact that body-centered cubic Nb was susceptible to hydrogen embrittlement. This work demonstrated that Nb-based multifilamentary alloys were potential candidates for alloy membranes for hydrogen purification.

Hydrogen Permeation Behavior of Multifilamentary Cu–Nb Superconducting Composites. T.Wong, K.Suzuki, M.Gibson, K.Ishikawa, K.Aoki, L.L.Jones: Scripta Materialia, 2010, 62[8], 582-5