The effect of chemical composition and particle size on the first hydrogenation of BCC alloy 52Ti-12V-36Cr were investigated. The alloy was studied in the undoped state and doped with 4%Zr. Three particle size ranges were selected: less than 0.5 mm, between 0.5 mm and 1 mm, and bigger than 1 mm. It was found that doping reduced the incubation time by more than two orders of magnitudes. Smaller particle size also reduces incubation time but only by a factor of three. The intrinsic hydrogenation kinetics were also significantly enhanced by doping. Moreover, there is some synergetic effect between doping and reduction of particle size. It was also found that incubation time depends on the average particle size and not on the distribution of particle sizes. (C) 2017 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.