The metal and its alloys

Alpha and beta phases

The atoms of pure titanium align in the solid state in either a hexagonal close-packed crystalline structure, called the alpha (α) phase, or a body-centred cubic structure, called the beta (β) phase. In the pure metal, transformation from the alpha to the beta phase occurs upon heating above 883 °C, but most alloying elements either stabilize the alpha phase to higher temperatures or stabilize the beta phase to lower temperatures. Aluminum (Al) and oxygen are typical alpha-stabilizing elements, and typical beta-stabilizing elements are vanadium (V), iron (Fe), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni), palladium (Pd), niobium (Nb), silicon (Si), and chromium (Cr). A few other alloying elements, such as tin (Sn) and zirconium (Zr), have little effect on phase stabilization. The most important alloying element is aluminum, which, in concentrations up to 8 percent by weight of the alloy, can be added as a strengthener without impairing ductility.

The lowest temperature at which a 100-percent beta phase can exist is called the beta transus; this can range from 700 °C (1,300 °F) to as high as 1,050 °C (1,900 °F), depending on alloy composition. Final mechanical working and heat treatments of titanium alloys are generally conducted below the beta transus temperature in order to achieve the proper microstructural phase distribution and grain size.

Using the common phases present at room temperature, titanium alloys are divided into four classes: commercially pure, alpha, alpha-beta, and beta. Each class has distinctive characteristics. Pure titanium, although very ductile, has low strength and is therefore used when strength is not critical and corrosion resistance is desired. The alpha alloys are weldable and have good elevated-temperature strengths. The alpha-beta alloys are widely used because of their good combinations of strength, toughness, and formability. The beta alloys are useful where very high tensile strengths are required.

There are three important markets for titanium metal: aerospace, nonaerospace industries, and alloy additives. The aerospace and industrial markets utilize mill products, while the alloy-additive market consumes lower-cost titanium units such as scrap and sponge. Small additions of titanium (less than 1 percent) are added to other metals such as nickel, aluminum, and iron in order to improve formability and mechanical properties.

Aerospace applications

The aerospace market is still the most important, with titanium products being used in both commercial and military aircraft. Gas turbines account for nearly half of annual titanium production. Titanium alloys are utilized principally in the fan and compressor sections at temperatures up to 600 °C. Typical parts include inlet cases, compressor blades, disks, and hubs, as well as spacers and seals. The large high-bypass turbofan engines utilized on wide-body commercial airliners could not have been developed without strong, lightweight titanium alloys. These engines are greater than 25 percent by weight titanium.

Titanium alloys are also utilized in airframes because of their high strength-to-weight ratios, good toughness, and corrosion resistance. The titanium content of airframes can range from as low as 2 percent to as high as 30 percent by weight. Typical commercial airframes are 4 to 8 percent titanium, while many military aircraft contain greater amounts. The metal is used in fasteners, landing-gear supports, springs, fail-safe straps, and numerous internal bulkhead and wing-support components.

Nonaerospace applications

The resistance of titanium to many corrosive environments, particularly oxidizing and chloride-containing process streams, has led to widespread industrial applications. Titanium is resistant to all natural environments, including natural waste products, body fluids, and salt and brackish water; to most salt solutions, including chlorides, bromides, iodides, and sulfides; and to most oxidizing acids, organic acids, and alkaline solutions.

When strength is not a major consideration, commercially pure titanium is the material of choice because of its lower cost, ease of fabrication, and good corrosion resistance. Alloys such as Ti–0.15Pd, Ti–0.3Mo–0.8Ni, and Ti–3Al–8V–6Cr–4Mo–4Zr can extend the usefulness of the metal to either higher temperatures or stronger concentrations of reducing acids and acidic salts. In recent years, more high-strength alloys have been utilized for corrosion applications. For example, Ti–6Al–4V, a versatile alloy that was developed in the 1950s for the aerospace industry, has become a very important material for medical prostheses such as hip-joint replacements because of its strength-to-weight ratio and immunity to body fluids. Ti–3Al–8V–6Cr–4Mo–4Zr, an even stronger alloy, also has excellent resistance to high-temperature sour gas (natural gas containing hydrogen sulfide) and is therefore used in energy extraction for downhole tubing and casings and for instrumentation.

Several industrial processes have been improved as a result of the availability of titanium. After titanium was introduced as a replacement for stainless-steel diffusion washers in the pulp and paper industry, the metal’s excellent performance encouraged the design of new displacement bleaching systems using up to 35 tons of titanium components. Typical parts include diffusers, central shafts, scrapers, filtrate pumps, heat exchangers, packing boxes, and valves. In the early 1960s it was discovered that coating titanium with a platinum-group metal or metal oxide produced an anode (a negatively charged electrode) that was slow to corrode in electrolytic solutions. Coated titanium anodes soon replaced graphite anodes in the chlorine industry, resulting in lower costs and products of higher purity. Extensions of this technology are now being applied to electrogalvanizing and tin-coating processes.

Chemical-process industries utilize titanium heat exchangers to eliminate corrosion problems caused by cooling waters containing chloride and sulfide, and several benefits can accrue from employing titanium on the process side of heat exchangers as well. Because the metal is resistant to erosion corrosion, titanium vessels can be subjected to process liquids flowing at high rates, thereby eliminating the danger of biofouling. In addition, titanium is the only metal known to be completely resistant to all forms of biofouling corrosion. These advantages, along with its light weight, make the metal desirable for heat exchangers in naval vessels and offshore oil platforms.

Titanium is gaining greater recognition in consumer applications, such as eyeglass frames, watches, sports equipment, jewelry, high-performance automobiles, and roofing. Other possible applications include valves for automobile engines, scrubbers for flue-gas desulfurization, marine and offshore risers, joints and fittings, and nuclear-waste storage and transportation casks.