Titanium was originally named "gregorite" by the British chemist Reverend William Gregor, who discovered it in 1791. Titanium was then independently discovered by the German chemist M. H. Klaproth in 1793. He named him a titan in honor of the titans from Greek mythology - "the embodiment of natural strength." It was not until 1797 that Klaproth discovered that his titanium was an element previously discovered by Gregor.

Characteristics and properties

Titanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. It is a shiny metal with a silvery color, low density, and high strength. It is resistant to corrosion in sea water and chlorine.

Element meets in a number of mineral deposits, mainly rutile and ilmenite, which are widely distributed in the earth's crust and lithosphere.

Titanium is used to produce strong light alloys. The two most useful properties of a metal are corrosion resistance and a hardness to density ratio, the highest of any metallic element. In its unalloyed state, this metal is as strong as some steels, but less dense.

Physical properties of metal

It's a strong metal with low density, rather ductile (especially in anoxic environment), brilliant and metalloid white. Its relatively high melting point of over 1650°C (or 3000°F) makes it useful as a refractory metal. It is paramagnetic and has rather low electrical and thermal conductivity.

On the Mohs scale, the hardness of titanium is 6. According to this indicator, it is slightly inferior to hardened steel and tungsten.

Commercially pure (99.2%) titanium has a tensile strength of about 434 MPa, which is in line with conventional low grade steel alloys, but titanium is much lighter.

Chemical properties of titanium

Like aluminum and magnesium, titanium and its alloys oxidize immediately when exposed to air. It reacts slowly with water and air at ambient temperature, because it forms a passive oxide coating which protects bulk metal from further oxidation.

Atmospheric passivation gives titanium excellent corrosion resistance almost equivalent to platinum. Titanium is able to withstand the attack of dilute sulfuric and hydrochloric acids, chloride solutions and most organic acids.

Titanium is one of the few elements that burns in pure nitrogen, reacting at 800° C (1470° F) to form titanium nitride. Due to their high reactivity with oxygen, nitrogen and some other gases, titanium filaments are used in titanium sublimation pumps as absorbers for these gases. These pumps are inexpensive and reliably produce extremely low pressures in UHV systems.

Common titanium-bearing minerals are anatase, brookite, ilmenite, perovskite, rutile, and titanite (sphene). Of these minerals, only rutile and ilmenite are of economic importance, but even these are difficult to find in high concentrations.

Titanium is found in meteorites and has been found in the Sun and M-type stars with a surface temperature of 3200° C (5790° F).

The currently known methods for extracting titanium from various ores are laborious and expensive.

Production and manufacturing

Currently, about 50 grades of titanium and titanium alloys have been developed and are being used. To date, 31 classes of titanium metal and alloys are recognized, of which classes 1-4 are commercially pure (unalloyed). They differ in tensile strength depending on the oxygen content, with Grade 1 being the most ductile (lowest tensile strength with 0.18% oxygen) and Grade 4 being the least ductile (maximum tensile strength with 0.40% oxygen). ).

The remaining classes are alloys, each of which has specific properties:

• plastic;
• strength;
• hardness;
• electrical resistance;
• specific corrosion resistance and their combinations.

In addition to these specifications, titanium alloys are also manufactured to meet aerospace and military equipment(SAE-AMS, MIL-T), ISO standards and country specific specifications, and end user requirements for aerospace, military, medical and industrial applications.

A commercially pure flat product (sheet, plate) can be easily formed, but processing must take into account the fact that the metal has a "memory" and a tendency to return back. This is especially true for some high-strength alloys.

Titanium is often used to make alloys:

• with aluminum;
• with vanadium;
• with copper (for hardening);
• with iron;
• with manganese;
• with molybdenum and other metals.

Areas of use

Titanium alloys in the form of sheet, plate, rod, wire, casting find applications in industrial, aerospace, recreational and emerging markets. Powdered titanium is used in pyrotechnics as a source of bright burning particles.

Because titanium alloys have a high tensile strength to density ratio, high corrosion resistance, fatigue resistance, high crack resistance, and moderate high temperature capability, they are used in aircraft, armor, sea ​​ships, spaceships and rockets.

For these applications, titanium is alloyed with aluminium, zirconium, nickel, vanadium and other elements to produce a variety of components including critical structural members, fire walls, landing gear, exhaust pipes (helicopters) and hydraulic systems. In fact, about two-thirds of the titanium metal produced is used in aircraft engines and frames.

Since titanium alloys are resistant to corrosion sea ​​water, they are used to make propeller shafts, heat exchanger fittings, etc. These alloys are used in housings and components of ocean observation and monitoring devices for science and the military.

Specific alloys are applied in downhole and oil wells and nickel hydrometallurgy for their high strength. The pulp and paper industry uses titanium in process equipment exposed to harsh environments such as sodium hypochlorite or wet chlorine gas (in bleaching). Other applications include ultrasonic welding, wave soldering.

In addition, these alloys are used in automobiles, especially in automobile and motorcycle racing, where low weight, high strength and stiffness are essential.

Titanium is used in many sporting goods: tennis rackets, golf clubs, lacrosse rollers; cricket, hockey, lacrosse and football helmets, as well as bicycle frames and components.

Due to its durability, titanium has become more popular for designer jewelry (particularly titanium rings). Its inertness makes it a good choice for people with allergies or those who will be wearing jewelry in environments such as swimming pools. Titanium is also alloyed with gold to produce an alloy that can be sold as 24 carat gold because 1% alloyed Ti is not enough to require a lower grade. The resulting alloy is about the hardness of 14 carat gold and is stronger than pure 24 carat gold.

Precautionary measures

Titanium is non-toxic even in high doses. In powder form or as metal shavings, it poses a serious fire hazard and, if heated in air, an explosion hazard.

Properties and Applications of Titanium Alloys

Below is an overview of the most commonly encountered titanium alloys, which are divided into classes, their properties, advantages and industrial applications.

7th grade

Grade 7 is mechanically and physically equivalent to Grade 2 pure titanium, except for the addition of an intermediate element of palladium, making it an alloy. It has excellent weldability and elasticity, the most corrosion resistance of all alloys of this type.

Class 7 is used in chemical processes and manufacturing equipment components.

Grade 11

Grade 11 is very similar to Grade 1, except for the addition of palladium to improve corrosion resistance, making it an alloy.

Other useful properties include optimum ductility, strength, toughness and excellent weldability. This alloy can be used especially in applications where corrosion is a problem:

• chemical processing;
• production of chlorates;
• desalination;
• marine applications.

Ti 6Al-4V class 5

Alloy Ti 6Al-4V, or grade 5 titanium, is the most commonly used. It accounts for 50% of the total titanium consumption worldwide.

Ease of use lies in its many benefits. Ti 6Al-4V can be heat treated to increase its strength. This alloy has high strength at low weight.

This is the best alloy to use in several industries such as aerospace, medical, marine and chemical processing industries. It can be used to create:

• aviation turbines;
• engine components;
• aircraft structural elements;
• aerospace fasteners;
• high-performance automatic parts;
• sports equipment.

Ti 6AL-4V ELI class 23

Grade 23 - surgical titanium. Ti 6AL-4V ELI, or Grade 23, is a higher purity version of Ti 6Al-4V. It can be made from rolls, strands, wires or flat wires. It is the best choice for any situation where a combination of high strength, low weight, good corrosion resistance and high toughness is required. It has excellent damage resistance.

It can be used in biomedical applications such as implantable components due to its biocompatibility, good fatigue strength. It can also be used in surgical procedures to fabricate these constructs:

• orthopedic pins and screws;
• clamps for ligature;
• surgical staples;
• springs;
• orthodontic appliances;
• cryogenic vessels;
• bone fixation devices.

Grade 12

Grade 12 titanium has excellent high quality weldability. It is a high strength alloy that provides good strength at high temperatures. Grade 12 titanium has characteristics similar to 300 series stainless steels.

Its ability to form in a variety of ways makes it useful in many applications. The high corrosion resistance of this alloy also makes it invaluable for manufacturing equipment. Class 12 can be used in the following industries:

• heat exchangers;
• hydrometallurgical applications;
• chemical production with elevated temperature;
• sea ​​and air components.

Ti5Al-2.5Sn

Ti 5Al-2.5Sn is an alloy that can provide good weldability with stability. It also has high temperature stability and high strength.

Ti 5Al-2.5Sn is mainly used in the aviation industry, as well as in cryogenic installations.

In the periodic system, the chemical element titanium is designated as Ti (Titanium) and is located in a side subgroup of group IV, in period 4 under atomic number 22. It is a silvery-white solid metal that is part of a large number of minerals. You can buy titanium on our website.

Titanium was discovered at the end of the 18th century by chemists from England and Germany, William Gregor and Martin Klaproth, independently of each other with a six-year difference. It was Martin Klaproth who gave the name to the element in honor of the ancient Greek characters of the titans (huge, strong, immortal creatures). As it turned out, the name became prophetic, but it took humanity even more than 150 years to get acquainted with all the properties of titanium. Only three decades later, the first sample of titanium metal was obtained. At that time, it was practically not used due to its fragility. In 1925, after a series of experiments, chemists Van Arkel and De Boer obtained pure titanium using the iodide method.

Due to the valuable properties of the metal, engineers and designers immediately drew attention to it. It was a real breakthrough. In 1940, Kroll developed a magnesium-thermal method for obtaining titanium from ore. This method is still relevant today.

Physical and mechanical properties

Titanium is a fairly refractory metal. Its melting point is 1668±3°C. According to this indicator, it is inferior to such metals as tantalum, tungsten, rhenium, niobium, molybdenum, tantalum, zirconium. Titanium is a paramagnetic metal. In a magnetic field, it is not magnetized, but it is not pushed out of it. Picture 2
Titanium has a low density (4.5 g/cm³) and high strength (up to 140 kg/mm²). These properties practically do not change at high temperatures. It is more than 1.5 times heavier than aluminum (2.7 g/cm³), but 1.5 times lighter than iron (7.8 g/cm³). In terms of mechanical properties, titanium is far superior to these metals. In terms of strength, titanium and its alloys are on a par with many grades of alloyed steels.

In terms of corrosion resistance, titanium is not inferior to platinum. The metal has excellent resistance to cavitation conditions. Air bubbles formed in a liquid medium during the active movement of a titanium part practically do not destroy it.

It is a durable metal that can resist fracture and plastic deformation. It is 12 times harder than aluminum and 4 times harder than copper and iron. Another important indicator is the yield strength. With an increase in this indicator, the resistance of titanium parts to operational loads improves.

In alloys with certain metals (especially nickel and hydrogen), titanium is able to "remember" the shape of the product created at a certain temperature. Such a product can then be deformed and it will retain this position for a long time. If the product is heated to the temperature at which it was made, then the product will take its original shape. This property is called "memory".

The thermal conductivity of titanium is relatively low and the coefficient of linear expansion, respectively, too. From this it follows that the metal is a poor conductor of electricity and heat. But at low temperatures, it is a superconductor of electricity, which allows it to transmit energy over considerable distances. Titanium also has a high electrical resistance.
Pure titanium metal is subject to various types cold and hot processing. It can be drawn and made into wire, forged, rolled into strips, sheets and foils with a thickness of up to 0.01 mm. The following types of rolled products are made from titanium: titanium tape, titanium wire, titanium pipes, titanium bushings, titanium circle, titanium bar.

Chemical properties

Pure titanium is a reactive element. Due to the fact that a dense protective film is formed on its surface, the metal is highly resistant to corrosion. It does not undergo oxidation in air, in salty sea water, does not change in many aggressive chemical environments (for example: dilute and concentrated nitric acid, aqua regia). At high temperatures, titanium interacts with reagents much more actively. It ignites in air at a temperature of 1200°C. When ignited, the metal gives off a bright glow. An active reaction also occurs with nitrogen, with the formation of a yellow-brown nitride film on the surface of titanium.

Reactions with hydrochloric and sulfuric acids at room temperature are weak, but when heated, the metal dissolves strongly. As a result of the reaction, lower chlorides and monosulfate are formed. Weak interactions with phosphoric and nitric acids also occur. The metal reacts with halogens. The reaction with chlorine occurs at 300°C.
The active reaction with hydrogen proceeds at a temperature slightly above room temperature. Titanium actively absorbs hydrogen. 1 g of titanium can absorb up to 400 cm³ of hydrogen. The heated metal decomposes carbon dioxide and water vapor. Interaction with water vapor occurs at temperatures above 800°C. As a result of the reaction, metal oxide is formed and hydrogen escapes. At higher temperatures, hot titanium absorbs carbon dioxide and forms carbide and oxide.

How to get

Titanium is one of the most common elements on Earth. Its content in the bowels of the planet by mass is 0.57%. The highest concentration of the metal is observed in the "basalt shell" (0.9%), in granitic rocks (0.23%) and in ultrabasic rocks (0.03%). There are about 70 titanium minerals that contain it in the form of titanic acid or dioxide. The main minerals of titanium ores are: ilmenite, anatase, rutile, brookite, loparite, leucoxene, perovskite and sphene. The main world producers of titanium are Great Britain, the USA, France, Japan, Canada, Italy, Spain and Belgium.
There are several ways to obtain titanium. All of them are applied in practice and are quite effective.

1. Magnesium thermal process.

Ore containing titanium is mined and processed into dioxide, which is slowly and at very high temperatures subjected to chlorination. Chlorination is carried out in a carbon environment. The titanium chloride formed as a result of the reaction is then reduced with magnesium. The resulting metal is heated in a vacuum equipment at a high temperature. As a result, magnesium and magnesium chloride evaporate, leaving titanium with many pores and voids. Sponge titanium is remelted to produce high-quality metal.

2. Hydride-calcium method.

First, titanium hydride is obtained, and then it is separated into components: titanium and hydrogen. The process takes place in an airless space at high temperature. Calcium oxide is formed, which is washed with weak acids.
Calcium hydride and magnesium thermal methods are commonly used on an industrial scale. These methods make it possible to obtain a significant amount of titanium in a short period of time, with minimal monetary costs.

3. Electrolysis method.

Titanium chloride or dioxide is exposed high strength current. As a result, the compounds are decomposed.

4. Iodide method.

Titanium dioxide interacts with iodine vapor. Next, titanium iodide is exposed to high temperature, resulting in titanium. This method is the most efficient, but also the most expensive. Titanium is of very high purity without impurities and additives.

Application of titanium

Due to its good anti-corrosion properties, titanium is used for the manufacture of chemical equipment. The high heat resistance of the metal and its alloys contributes to the use in modern technology. Titanium alloys are an excellent material for aircraft, rocket and shipbuilding.

Monuments are made from titanium. And the bells made of this metal are known for their extraordinary and very beautiful sound. Titanium dioxide is a component of some medicines, for example: ointments against skin diseases. Metal compounds with nickel, aluminum and carbon are also in great demand.

Titanium and its alloys have found application in such areas as the chemical and food industries, non-ferrous metallurgy, electronics, nuclear technology, power engineering, electroplating. Weapons, armor plates, surgical instruments and implants, irrigation systems, sports equipment and even jewelry are made from titanium and its alloys. In the process of nitriding, a golden film is formed on the surface of the metal, which is not inferior in beauty even to real gold.

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Subtitles

Hi all! Alexander Ivanov is with you and this is the project “Chemistry is simple” And now we will light it up a little with titanium! This is what a few grams of pure titanium look like, which were obtained a long time ago at the University of Manchester, when it was not even a university yet This sample is from that very museum This is what the main mineral from which titanium is extracted looks like This is Rutile There are more than 100 known minerals that contain titanium In 1867, everything that people knew about titanium fit in a textbook on 1 page By the beginning of the 20th century, nothing really changed In 1791, the English chemist and mineralogist William Gregor discovered a new element in the mineral menakinite and called it "menakin" A little later, in 1795, the German chemist Martin Klaproth discovered a new chemical element in another mineral - rutile. Titanium got its name from Klaproth, who named it in honor of the queen of the elves Titania. However, according to another version, the name of the element comes from the titans, the mighty sons of the goddess of the earth - Gays However, in 1797 it turned out that Gregor and Klaproth discovered the same chemical element. But the name the one that Klaproth gave remained. But, neither Gregor nor Klaproth were able to obtain metallic titanium. They obtained a white crystalline powder, which was titanium dioxide. For the first time, metallic titanium was obtained by the Russian scientist D.K. Kirilov in 1875 But as it happens without proper coverage, his work was not noticed. After that, pure titanium was obtained by the Swedes L. Nilsson and O. Peterson, as well as the Frenchman Moissan. And only in 1910, the American chemist M. Hunter improved the previous methods for obtaining titanium and received several grams of pure 99% titanium. That is why in most books it is Hunter who indicates how the scientist who received metallic titanium Nobody predicted a great future for titanium, since the slightest impurities in its composition made it very fragile and fragile, which did not allow mechanical processing Therefore, some titanium compounds found their widespread use earlier than the metal itself. Titanium tetrachloride was used for the first time. world war to create smoke screens In the open air, titanium tetrachloride is hydrolyzed to form titanium oxychlorides and titanium oxide The white smoke that we see is particles of titanium oxychlorides and titanium oxide That these particles can be confirmed if we drop a few drops of titanium tetrachloride into water Tetrachloride titanium is currently used to obtain metallic titanium The method for obtaining pure titanium has not changed for a hundred years First, titanium dioxide is converted with chlorine into titanium tetrachloride, which we spoke about earlier. Then, using magnesiumthermia, titanium tetrachloride is obtained from titanium tetrachloride, which is formed in in the form of a sponge This process is carried out at a temperature of 900 ° C in steel retorts Due to the harsh reaction conditions, we unfortunately do not have the opportunity to show this process. As a result, a titanium sponge is obtained, which is melted into a compact metal. The iodide method is used to obtain ultrapure titanium. finishing, which we will talk about in detail in the video about zirconium. As you have already noticed, titanium tetrachloride is a transparent, colorless liquid under normal conditions. But if we take titanium trichloride, it is a solid purple substance. Just one less chlorine atom in the molecule, and already another Condition Titanium trichloride is hygroscopic. Therefore, it is possible to work with it only in an inert atmosphere. Titanium trichloride dissolves well in hydrochloric acid. You are now observing this process. A complex ion 3 is formed in the solution. What are complex ions, I will tell you some other time next time. In the meantime, just be horrified :) If a little nitric acid is added to the resulting solution, then titanium nitrate is formed and brown gas is released, which we actually see. There is a qualitative reaction to titanium ions. We drop hydrogen peroxide. As you can see, a reaction occurs with the formation of a brightly colored compound This is pertitanic acid. In 1908, titanium dioxide began to be used in the United States for the production of white, which replaced white, which was based on lead and zinc. Titanium white was much superior in quality to lead and zinc counterparts. Also, titanium oxide was used to produce enamel, which was used for metal and wood coatings in shipbuilding Currently, titanium dioxide is used in the food industry as a white dye - this is an additive E171, which can be found in crab sticks, breakfast cereals, mayonnaise, chewing gum, dairy products, etc. Also, titanium dioxide is used in cosmetics - he enters the sos having sunscreen "All that glitters is not gold" - we know this saying from childhood And in relation to the modern church and titanium it works in the literal sense And it seems that what can be in common between the church and titanium? And here's what: all modern domes of churches that shimmer with gold, in fact, have nothing to do with gold. In fact, all domes are coated with titanium nitride. Also, metal drills are coated with titanium nitride. Only in 1925, high-purity titanium was obtained, which made it possible to study it. physical and chemical properties And they turned out to be fantastic. It turned out that titanium, being almost twice as light as iron, surpasses many steels in strength. Also, although titanium is one and a half times heavier than aluminum, it is six times stronger than it and retains its strength up to 500 ° C. - due to its high electrical conductivity and non-magnetism, titanium is of high interest in electrical engineering Titanium is highly resistant to corrosion Due to its properties, titanium has become a material for space technologies In Russia, in Verkhnyaya Salda, there is a corporation VSMPO-AVISMA, which produces titanium for the global aerospace industry From Verkhne Saldinskoye titanium make Boeings, Airbuses, Rolls-Ro ice cubes, various chemical equipment and many other expensive junk However, each of you can purchase a shovel or crowbar made of pure titanium! And it's not a joke! And this is how fine titanium powder reacts with atmospheric oxygen Thanks to such colorful combustion, titanium has found application in pyrotechnics And that's it, subscribe, put your finger up, don't forget to support the project and tell your friends! Bye!

Story

The discovery of TiO 2 was made almost simultaneously and independently by an Englishman W. Gregor?! and the German chemist M. G. Klaproth. W. Gregor, studying the composition of magnetic ferruginous sand (Creed, Cornwall, England,), isolated a new "earth" (oxide) of an unknown metal, which he called menaken. In 1795, the German chemist Klaproth discovered a new element in the mineral rutile and named it titanium. Two years later, Klaproth established that rutile and menaken earth are oxides of the same element, behind which the name "titanium" proposed by Klaproth remained. After 10 years, the discovery of titanium took place for the third time. The French scientist L. Vauquelin discovered titanium in anatase and proved that rutile and anatase are identical titanium oxides.

The first sample of metallic titanium was obtained in 1825 by J. Ya. Berzelius. Due to the high chemical activity of titanium and the complexity of its purification, the Dutch A. van Arkel and I. de Boer obtained a pure sample of Ti in 1925 by thermal decomposition of titanium iodide vapor TiI 4 .

origin of name

The metal got its name in honor of the titans, the characters of ancient Greek mythology, the children of Gaia. The name of the element was given by Martin Klaproth in accordance with his views on chemical nomenclature, as opposed to the French chemical school, where they tried to name the element by its chemical properties. Since the German researcher himself noted the impossibility of determining the properties of a new element only by its oxide, he chose a name for it from mythology, by analogy with uranium discovered by him earlier.

Being in nature

Titanium is the 10th most abundant in nature. The content in the earth's crust is 0.57% by mass, in sea water - 0.001 mg / l. 300 g/t in ultrabasic rocks, 9 kg/t in basic rocks, 2.3 kg/t in acid rocks, 4.5 kg/t in clays and shales. In the earth's crust, titanium is almost always tetravalent and is present only in oxygen compounds. It does not occur in free form. Titanium under conditions of weathering and precipitation has a geochemical affinity for Al 2 O 3 . It is concentrated in bauxites of the weathering crust and in marine clayey sediments. The transfer of titanium is carried out in the form of mechanical fragments of minerals and in the form of colloids. Up to 30% TiO 2 by weight accumulates in some clays. Titanium minerals are resistant to weathering and form large concentrations in placers. More than 100 minerals containing titanium are known. The most important of them are: rutile TiO 2 , ilmenite FeTiO 3 , titanomagnetite FeTiO 3 + Fe 3 O 4 , perovskite CaTiO 3 , titanite CaTiSiO 5 . There are primary titanium ores - ilmenite-titanomagnetite and placer - rutile-ilmenite-zircon.

Place of Birth

Titanium deposits are located on the territory of South Africa, Russia, Ukraine, China, Japan, Australia, India, Ceylon, Brazil, South Korea, Kazakhstan. In the CIS countries, the Russian Federation (58.5%) and Ukraine (40.2%) take the leading place in terms of explored reserves of titanium ores. The largest deposit in Russia - Yaregskoye.

Reserves and production

In 2002, 90% of the mined titanium was used for the production of titanium dioxide TiO 2 . World production of titanium dioxide was 4.5 million tons per year. The confirmed reserves of titanium dioxide (without Russia) are about 800 million tons. For 2006, according to the US Geological Survey, in terms of titanium dioxide and excluding Russia, the reserves of ilmenite ores amount to 603-673 million tons, and rutile - 49, 7-52.7 million tons. Thus, at the current rate of production, the world's proven reserves of titanium (excluding Russia) will be enough for more than 150 years.

Russia has the world's second largest reserves of titanium after China. The mineral resource base of titanium in Russia consists of 20 deposits (of which 11 are primary and 9 are alluvial), fairly evenly dispersed throughout the country. The largest of the explored deposits (Yaregskoye) is located 25 km from the city of Ukhta (Komi Republic). The reserves of the deposit are estimated at 2 billion tons of ore with an average titanium dioxide content of about 10%.

The world's largest titanium producer is the Russian company VSMPO-AVISMA.

Receipt

As a rule, the starting material for the production of titanium and its compounds is titanium dioxide with a relatively small amount of impurities. In particular, it can be a rutile concentrate obtained during the beneficiation of titanium ores. However, rutile reserves in the world are very limited, and the so-called synthetic rutile or titanium slag, obtained during the processing of ilmenite concentrates, is more often used. To obtain titanium slag, ilmenite concentrate is reduced in an electric arc furnace, while iron is separated into a metal phase (cast iron), and not reduced titanium oxides and impurities form a slag phase. Rich slag is processed by the chloride or sulfuric acid method.

The concentrate of titanium ores is subjected to sulfuric acid or pyrometallurgical processing. The product of sulfuric acid treatment is titanium dioxide powder TiO 2 . Using the pyrometallurgical method, the ore is sintered with coke and treated with chlorine, obtaining a pair of titanium tetrachloride TiCl 4:

TiCl 4 vapors formed at 850 ° C are reduced with magnesium:

In addition, the so-called Cambridge FFC process, named after its developers Derek Frey, Tom Farthing and George Chen, and the University of Cambridge, where it was created, is now beginning to gain popularity. This electrochemical process allows direct continuous reduction of titanium from oxide in a melt mixture of calcium chloride and quicklime. This process uses an electrolytic bath filled with a mixture of calcium chloride and lime, with a graphite sacrificial (or neutral) anode and a cathode made from an oxide to be reduced. When a current is passed through the bath, the temperature quickly reaches ~1000–1100°C, and the calcium oxide melt decomposes at the anode into oxygen and metallic calcium:

The resulting oxygen oxidizes the anode (in the case of using graphite), and calcium migrates in the melt to the cathode, where it restores titanium from oxide:

The resulting calcium oxide again dissociates into oxygen and metallic calcium, and the process is repeated up to complete transformation cathode into a titanium sponge, or exhaustion of calcium oxide. Calcium chloride in this process is used as an electrolyte to impart electrical conductivity to the melt and mobility of active calcium and oxygen ions. When using an inert anode (for example, tin oxide), instead of carbon dioxide, molecular oxygen is released at the anode, which pollutes less environment, however, the process in this case becomes less stable, and, in addition, under certain conditions, the decomposition of chloride, rather than calcium oxide, becomes more energetically favorable, which leads to the release of molecular chlorine.

The resulting titanium "sponge" is melted down and purified. Titanium is refined by the iodide method or by electrolysis, separating Ti from TiCl 4 . To obtain titanium ingots, arc, electron beam or plasma processing is used.

Physical Properties

Titanium is a light, silvery white metal. It exists in two crystalline modifications: α-Ti with a hexagonal close-packed lattice (a=2.951 Å; c=4.679 Å; z=2; space group C6mmc), β-Ti with cubic body-centered packing (a=3.269 Å; z=2; space group Im3m), transition temperature α↔β 883 °C, ΔH transition 3.8 kJ/mol. Melting point 1660 ± 20 °C, boiling point 3260 °C, density of α-Ti and β-Ti is respectively 4.505 (20 °C) and 4.32 (900 °C) g/cm³, atomic density 5.71⋅10 22 at/cm³ [ ] . Plastic, welded in an inert atmosphere. Resistivity 0.42 µOhm m at 20 °C

It has a high viscosity, during machining it is prone to sticking to the cutting tool, and therefore it is required to apply special coatings to the tool, various lubricants.

At normal temperature, it is covered with a protective passivating film of TiO 2 oxide, due to which it is corrosion-resistant in most environments (except alkaline).

Titanium dust tends to explode. Flash point - 400 °C. Titanium shavings are flammable.

Titanium, along with steel, tungsten and platinum, has a high resistance in vacuum, which, along with its lightness, makes it very promising in design spaceships.

Chemical properties

Titanium is resistant to dilute solutions of many acids and alkalis (except H 3 PO 4 and concentrated H 2 SO 4).

Easily reacts even with weak acids in the presence of complexing agents, for example, with hydrofluoric acid, it interacts due to the formation of a complex anion 2−. Titanium is most susceptible to corrosion in organic media, since, in the presence of water, a dense passive film of oxides and titanium hydride is formed on the surface of a titanium product. The most noticeable increase in the corrosion resistance of titanium is noticeable with an increase in the water content in an aggressive environment from 0.5 to 8.0%, which is confirmed by electrochemical studies of the electrode potentials of titanium in solutions of acids and alkalis in mixed water-organic media.

When heated in air to 1200°C, Ti ignites with a bright white flame with the formation of oxide phases of variable composition TiO x . Hydroxide TiO(OH) 2 ·xH 2 O precipitates from solutions of titanium salts, by careful calcination of which oxide TiO 2 is obtained. TiO(OH) 2 hydroxide xH 2 O and TiO 2 dioxide are amphoteric.

Application

In pure form and in the form of alloys

• Titanium in the form of alloys is the most important structural material in aircraft, rocket and shipbuilding.
• The metal is used in: chemical industry (reactors, pipelines, pumps, pipeline fittings), military industry (body armor, armor and fire barriers in aviation, submarine hulls), industrial processes (desalination plants, pulp and paper processes), automotive industry, agricultural industry, food industry, piercing jewelry, medical industry (prostheses, osteoprostheses), dental and endodontic instruments, dental implants, sporting goods, jewelry, mobile phones, light alloys, etc.
• Titanium casting is carried out in vacuum furnaces in graphite molds. Vacuum investment casting is also used. Due to technological difficulties in artistic casting, it is used to a limited extent. The first monumental cast titanium sculpture in the world is the monument to Yuri Gagarin on the square named after him in Moscow.
• Titanium is an alloying addition in many alloy steels and most special alloys [ what?] .
• Nitinol (nickel-titanium) is a shape memory alloy used in medicine and technology.
• Titanium aluminides are very resistant to oxidation and heat-resistant, which, in turn, determined their use in aviation and automotive industry as structural materials.
• Titanium is one of the most common getter materials used in high vacuum pumps.

In the form of connections

• White titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) is used in paints (such as titanium white) as well as in the manufacture of paper and plastics. Food additive E171 .
• Organotitanium compounds (for example, tetrabutoxytitanium) are used as a catalyst and hardener in the chemical and paint industries.
• Inorganic titanium compounds are used in the chemical, electronic, glass fiber industries as additives or coatings.
• Titanium carbide, titanium diboride, titanium carbonitride are important components of superhard materials for metal processing.
• Titanium nitride is used to coat tools, church domes and in the manufacture of costume jewelry, as it has a color similar to gold.
• Barium titanate BaTiO 3, lead titanate PbTiO 3 and a number of other titanates are ferroelectrics.

There are many titanium alloys with different metals. Alloying elements are divided into three groups, depending on their effect on the temperature of polymorphic transformation: beta stabilizers, alpha stabilizers and neutral hardeners. The former lower the transformation temperature, the latter increase it, and the latter do not affect it, but lead to solution hardening of the matrix. Examples of alpha stabilizers: aluminum, oxygen, carbon, nitrogen. Beta stabilizers: molybdenum, vanadium, iron, chromium, nickel. Neutral hardeners: zirconium, tin, silicon. Beta stabilizers, in turn, are divided into beta-isomorphic and beta-eutectoid-forming.

The most common titanium alloy is the Ti-6Al-4V alloy (in the Russian classification - VT6).

Analysis of consumer markets

The purity and grade of rough titanium (titanium sponge) is usually determined by its hardness, which depends on the content of impurities. The most common brands are TG100 and TG110 [ ] .

Physiological action

As mentioned above, titanium is also used in dentistry. Distinctive feature The use of titanium lies not only in strength, but also in the ability of the metal itself to grow together with the bone, which makes it possible to ensure the quasi-solidity of the tooth base.

isotopes

Natural titanium consists of a mixture of five stable isotopes: 46 Ti (7.95%), 47 Ti (7.75%), 48 Ti (73.45%), 49 Ti (5.51%), 50 Ti (5, 34%).

Known artificial radioactive isotopes 45 Ti (T ½ = 3.09 h), 51 Ti (T ½ = 5.79 min) and others.

Notes

1. Michael E. Wieser, Norman Holden, Tyler B. Coplen, John K. Böhlke, Michael Berglund, Willi A. Brand, Paul De Bièvre, Manfred Gröning, Robert D. Loss, Juris Meija, Takafumi Hirata, Thomas Prohaska, Ronny Schoenberg, Glenda O'Connor, Thomas Walczyk, Shige Yoneda, Xiang‑Kun Zhu. Atomic weights of the elements 2011 (IUPAC Technical Report) (English) // Pure and Applied Chemistry. - 2013. - Vol. 85, no. 5 . - P. 1047-1078. - DOI:10.1351/PAC-REP-13-03-02 .
2. Editorial staff: Zefirov N. S. (editor-in-chief). Chemical encyclopedia: in 5 volumes - Moscow: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1995. - T. 4. - S. 590-592. - 639 p. - 20,000 copies. - ISBN 5-85270-039-8.
3. Titanium- article from the Physical Encyclopedia
4. J.P. Riley and Skirrow G. Chemical Oceanography V. 1, 1965
5. Deposit titanium.
6. Deposit titanium.
7. Ilmenite, rutile, titanomagnetite - 2006
8. Titanium (indefinite) . Information-analytical center "Mineral". Retrieved November 19, 2010. Archived from the original on August 21, 2011.
9. Corporation VSMPO-AVISMA
10. Koncz, St; Szanto, St.; Waldhauser, H., Der Sauerstoffgehalt von Titan-jodidstäben, Naturwiss. 42 (1955) pp.368-369
11. Titanium - metal of the future (Russian).
12. Titanium - article from the Chemical Encyclopedia
13. Influence water on process passivation titanium - 26 February 2015 - Chemistry and chemical technology in life (indefinite) . www.chemfive.ru Retrieved 21 October 2015.
14. Art casting in XX century
15. In the world market titanium for the last two months prices stabilized (review)

Links

• Titanium in the Popular Library of Chemical Elements

Physical and chemical properties of titanium, obtaining titanium

The use of titanium in pure form and in the form of alloys, the use of titanium in the form of compounds, the physiological effect of titanium

Section 1. History and occurrence of titanium in nature.

Titan -this is an element of a secondary subgroup of the fourth group, the fourth period of the periodic system of chemical elements of D. I. Mendeleev, with atomic number 22. The simple substance titanium (CAS number: 7440-32-6) is a light silver-white metal. It exists in two crystalline modifications: α-Ti with a hexagonal close-packed lattice, β-Ti with a cubic body-centered packing, the temperature of the polymorphic transformation α↔β is 883 °C. Melting point 1660±20 °C.

History and presence in nature of titanium

Titan was named after the ancient Greek characters Titans. The German chemist Martin Klaproth named it this way for his personal reasons, unlike the French who tried to give names in accordance with the chemical characteristics of the element, but since then the properties of the element were unknown, such a name was chosen.

Titanium is the 10th element in terms of number of it on our planet. The amount of titanium in the earth's crust is 0.57% by weight and 0.001 milligrams per 1 liter of sea water. Titanium deposits are located on the territory of: Yuzhno African Republic, Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Japan, Australia, India, Ceylon, Brazil and South Korea.

By physical properties titanium is a light silvery metal, in addition, it is characterized by high viscosity during machining and is prone to sticking to the cutting tool, so special lubricants or spraying are used to eliminate this effect. At room temperature, it is covered with a translucent film of TiO2 oxide, due to which it is resistant to corrosion in most aggressive environments, except for alkalis. Titanium dust has the ability to explode, with a flash point of 400 °C. Titanium shavings are flammable.

To produce pure titanium or its alloys, in most cases, titanium dioxide is used with a small number of compounds included in it. For example, a rutile concentrate obtained by beneficiation of titanium ores. But the reserves of rutile are extremely small, and in connection with this, the so-called synthetic rutile or titanium slag, obtained during the processing of ilmenite concentrates, is used.

The discoverer of titanium is considered to be 28-year-old English monk William Gregor. In 1790, while conducting mineralogical surveys in his parish, he drew attention to the prevalence and unusual properties of black sand in the valley of Menaken in the south-west of England and began to explore it. In the sand, the priest found grains of a black shiny mineral, attracted by an ordinary magnet. Obtained in 1925 by Van Arkel and de Boer by the iodide method, the purest titanium turned out to be a ductile and technological metal with many valuable properties that attracted the attention of a wide range of designers and engineers. In 1940, Croll proposed a magnesium-thermal method for extracting titanium from ores, which is still the main one at the present time. In 1947, the first 45 kg of commercially pure titanium were produced.

Titanium has the atomic number 22 in Mendeleev's periodic table of elements. Atomic mass natural titanium, calculated from the results of studies of its isotopes, is 47.926. So, the nucleus of a neutral titanium atom contains 22 protons. The number of neutrons, that is, neutral uncharged particles, is different: more often 26, but can vary from 24 to 28. Therefore, the number of titanium isotopes is different. In total, 13 isotopes of element No. 22 are now known. Natural titanium consists of a mixture of five stable isotopes, titanium-48 is the most widely represented, its share in natural ores is 73.99%. Titanium and other elements of the IVB subgroup are very similar in properties to the elements of the IIIB subgroup (scandium group), although they differ from the latter in their ability to exhibit a large valency. The similarity of titanium with scandium, yttrium, as well as with elements of the VB subgroup - vanadium and niobium, is also expressed in the fact that titanium is often found in natural minerals together with these elements. With monovalent halogens (fluorine, bromine, chlorine and iodine), it can form di-tri- and tetra compounds, with sulfur and elements of its group (selenium, tellurium) - mono- and disulfides, with oxygen - oxides, dioxides and trioxides.

Titanium also forms compounds with hydrogen (hydrides), nitrogen (nitrides), carbon (carbides), phosphorus (phosphides), arsenic (arsides), as well as compounds with many metals - intermetallic compounds. Titanium forms not only simple, but also numerous complex compounds; many of its compounds with organic substances are known. As can be seen from the list of compounds in which titanium can participate, it is chemically very active. And at the same time, titanium is one of the few metals with exceptionally high corrosion resistance: it is practically eternal in the air, in cold and boiling water, it is very resistant in sea water, in solutions of many salts, inorganic and organic acids. In terms of its corrosion resistance in sea water, it surpasses all metals, with the exception of noble ones - gold, platinum, etc., most types of stainless steel, nickel, copper and other alloys. In water, in many aggressive environments, pure titanium is not subject to corrosion. Resists titanium and erosion corrosion resulting from a combination of chemical and mechanical effects on the metal. In this regard, it is not inferior to the best grades of stainless steels, copper-based alloys and other structural materials. Titanium also resists fatigue corrosion well, which often manifests itself in the form of violations of the integrity and strength of the metal (cracking, local corrosion centers, etc.). The behavior of titanium in many aggressive environments, such as nitrogen, hydrochloric, sulfuric, "aqua regia" and other acids and alkalis, is surprising and admirable for this metal.

Titanium is a very refractory metal. For a long time it was believed that it melts at 1800 ° C, but in the mid-50s. English scientists Diardorf and Hayes established the melting point for pure elemental titanium. It amounted to 1668 ± 3 ° C. In terms of its refractoriness, titanium is second only to such metals as tungsten, tantalum, niobium, rhenium, molybdenum, platinoids, zirconium, and among the main structural metals it is in first place. The most important feature of titanium as a metal is its unique physical and chemical properties: low density, high strength, hardness, etc. The main thing is that these properties do not change significantly at high temperatures.

Titanium is a light metal, its density at 0°C is only 4.517 g/cm8, and at 100°C it is 4.506 g/cm3. Titanium belongs to the group of metals with a specific gravity of less than 5 g/cm3. This includes all alkali metals (sodium, cadium, lithium, rubidium, cesium) with a specific gravity of 0.9–1.5 g/cm3, magnesium (1.7 g/cm3), aluminum (2.7 g/cm3) and etc. Titanium is more than 1.5 times heavier than aluminum, and in this, of course, it loses to it, but it is 1.5 times lighter than iron (7.8 g/cm3). However, occupying an intermediate position between aluminum and iron in terms of specific density, titanium surpasses them many times over in its mechanical properties.). Titanium has a significant hardness: it is 12 times harder than aluminum, 4 times harder than iron and copper. Another important characteristic of a metal is its yield strength. The higher it is, the better the parts made of this metal resist operational loads. The yield strength of titanium is almost 18 times higher than that of aluminum. The specific strength of titanium alloys can be increased by a factor of 1.5–2. Its high mechanical properties are well preserved at temperatures up to several hundred degrees. Pure titanium is suitable for all types of processing in hot and cold states: it can be forged like iron, drawn and even made into wire, rolled into sheets, tapes, and foils up to 0.01 mm thick.

Unlike most metals, titanium has significant electrical resistance: if the electrical conductivity of silver is taken as 100, then the electrical conductivity of copper is 94, aluminum is 60, iron and platinum are -15, and titanium is only 3.8. Titanium is a paramagnetic metal, it is not magnetized like iron in a magnetic field, but it is not pushed out of it like copper. Its magnetic susceptibility is very weak, this property can be used in construction. Titanium has a relatively low thermal conductivity, only 22.07 W / (mK), which is approximately 3 times lower than the thermal conductivity of iron, 7 times lower than magnesium, 17–20 times lower than aluminum and copper. Accordingly, the coefficient of linear thermal expansion of titanium is lower than that of other structural materials: at 20 C, it is 1.5 times lower than that of iron, 2 - for copper, and almost 3 - for aluminum. Thus, titanium is a poor conductor of electricity and heat.

Today, titanium alloys are widely used in aviation technology. titanium alloys industrial scale were first used in the design of aircraft jet engines. The use of titanium in the design of jet engines makes it possible to reduce their weight by 10...25%. In particular, compressor discs and blades, air intake parts, guide vanes and fasteners are made from titanium alloys. Titanium alloys are indispensable for supersonic aircraft. The growth of flight speeds aircraft led to an increase in the temperature of the skin, as a result of which aluminum alloys no longer meet the requirements of aviation technology for supersonic speeds. The skin temperature in this case reaches 246...316 °C. Under these conditions, titanium alloys turned out to be the most acceptable material. In the 70s, the use of titanium alloys for the airframe of civil aircraft increased significantly. In the medium-haul aircraft TU-204, the total mass of parts made of titanium alloys is 2570 kg. The use of titanium in helicopters is gradually expanding, mainly for parts of the main rotor system, drive, and control system. An important place is occupied by titanium alloys in rocket science.

Due to the high corrosion resistance in sea water, titanium and its alloys are used in shipbuilding for the manufacture of propellers, ship plating, submarines, torpedoes, etc. Shells do not stick to titanium and its alloys, which sharply increase the resistance of the vessel when it moves. Gradually, the areas of application of titanium are expanding. Titanium and its alloys are used in the chemical, petrochemical, pulp and paper and food industries, non-ferrous metallurgy, power engineering, electronics, nuclear technology, electroplating, in the manufacture of weapons, for the manufacture of armor plates, surgical instruments, surgical implants, desalination plants, racing car parts , sports equipment (golf clubs, climbing equipment), watch parts and even jewelry. Nitriding of titanium leads to the formation of a golden film on its surface, which is not inferior in beauty to real gold.

The discovery of TiO2 was made almost simultaneously and independently by the Englishman W. Gregor and the German chemist M. G. Klaproth. W. Gregor, studying the composition of magnetic ferruginous sand (Creed, Cornwall, England, 1791), isolated a new "earth" (oxide) of an unknown metal, which he called menaken. In 1795, the German chemist Klaproth discovered a new element in the mineral rutile and named it titanium. Two years later, Klaproth established that rutile and menaken earth are oxides of the same element, behind which the name "titanium" proposed by Klaproth remained. After 10 years, the discovery of titanium took place for the third time. The French scientist L. Vauquelin discovered titanium in anatase and proved that rutile and anatase are identical titanium oxides.

The first sample of metallic titanium was obtained in 1825 by J. Ya. Berzelius. Due to the high chemical activity of titanium and the complexity of its purification, the Dutch A. van Arkel and I. de Boer obtained a pure Ti sample in 1925 by thermal decomposition of titanium iodide TiI4 vapor.

Titanium is the 10th most abundant in nature. The content in the earth's crust is 0.57% by mass, in sea water 0.001 mg / l. 300 g/t in ultrabasic rocks, 9 kg/t in basic rocks, 2.3 kg/t in acid rocks, 4.5 kg/t in clays and shales. In the earth's crust, titanium is almost always tetravalent and is present only in oxygen compounds. It does not occur in free form. Titanium under conditions of weathering and precipitation has a geochemical affinity for Al2O3. It is concentrated in bauxites of the weathering crust and in marine clayey sediments. The transfer of titanium is carried out in the form of mechanical fragments of minerals and in the form of colloids. Up to 30% TiO2 by weight accumulates in some clays. Titanium minerals are resistant to weathering and form large concentrations in placers. More than 100 minerals containing titanium are known. The most important of them are: rutile TiO2, ilmenite FeTiO3, titanomagnetite FeTiO3 + Fe3O4, perovskite CaTiO3, titanite CaTiSiO5. There are primary titanium ores - ilmenite-titanomagnetite and placer - rutile-ilmenite-zircon.

Main ores: ilmenite (FeTiO3), rutile (TiO2), titanite (CaTiSiO5).

In 2002, 90% of the mined titanium was used for the production of titanium dioxide TiO2. World production of titanium dioxide was 4.5 million tons per year. The confirmed reserves of titanium dioxide (without Russia) are about 800 million tons. For 2006, according to the US Geological Survey, in terms of titanium dioxide and excluding Russia, the reserves of ilmenite ores amount to 603-673 million tons, and rutile - 49.7- 52.7 million tons. Thus, at the current rate of production, the world's proven reserves of titanium (excluding Russia) will be enough for more than 150 years.

Russia has the world's second largest reserves of titanium after China. The mineral resource base of titanium in Russia consists of 20 deposits (of which 11 are primary and 9 are alluvial), fairly evenly dispersed throughout the country. The largest of the explored deposits (Yaregskoye) is located 25 km from the city of Ukhta (Komi Republic). The reserves of the deposit are estimated at 2 billion tons of ore with an average titanium dioxide content of about 10%.

The world's largest titanium producer is the Russian company VSMPO-AVISMA.

As a rule, the starting material for the production of titanium and its compounds is titanium dioxide with a relatively small amount of impurities. In particular, it can be a rutile concentrate obtained during the beneficiation of titanium ores. However, the reserves of rutile in the world are very limited, and the so-called synthetic rutile or titanium slag, obtained during the processing of ilmenite concentrates, is more often used. To obtain titanium slag, ilmenite concentrate is reduced in an electric arc furnace, while iron is separated into a metal phase (cast iron), and not reduced titanium oxides and impurities form a slag phase. Rich slag is processed by the chloride or sulfuric acid method.

In pure form and in the form of alloys

Titanium monument to Gagarin on Leninsky Prospekt in Moscow

The metal is used in: chemical industry (reactors, pipelines, pumps, pipeline fittings), military industry (body armor, armor and fire barriers in aviation, submarine hulls), industrial processes (desalination plants, pulp and paper processes), automotive industry, agricultural industry, food industry, piercing jewelry, medical industry (prostheses, osteoprostheses), dental and endodontic instruments, dental implants, sporting goods, jewelry (Alexander Khomov), mobile phones, light alloys, etc. It is the most important structural material in aircraft, rocket, shipbuilding.

Titanium casting is carried out in vacuum furnaces in graphite molds. Vacuum investment casting is also used. Due to technological difficulties, it is used in artistic casting to a limited extent. The first monumental cast titanium sculpture in the world is the monument to Yuri Gagarin on the square named after him in Moscow.

Titanium is an alloying addition in many alloy steels and most special alloys.

Nitinol (nickel-titanium) is a shape memory alloy used in medicine and technology.

Titanium aluminides are very resistant to oxidation and heat-resistant, which in turn determined their use in aviation and automotive industry as structural materials.

Titanium is one of the most common getter materials used in high vacuum pumps.

White titanium dioxide (TiO2) is used in paints (such as titanium white) as well as in the manufacture of paper and plastics. Food additive E171.

Organotitanium compounds (eg tetrabutoxytitanium) are used as a catalyst and hardener in the chemical and paint industries.

Inorganic titanium compounds are used in the chemical, electronic, glass fiber industries as additives or coatings.

Titanium carbide, titanium diboride, titanium carbonitride are important components of superhard materials for metal processing.

Titanium nitride is used to coat tools, church domes and in the manufacture of costume jewelry, because. has a color similar to gold.

Barium titanate BaTiO3, lead titanate PbTiO3 and a number of other titanates are ferroelectrics.

There are many titanium alloys with different metals. Alloying elements are divided into three groups, depending on their effect on the temperature of polymorphic transformation: beta stabilizers, alpha stabilizers and neutral hardeners. The former lower the transformation temperature, the latter increase it, and the latter do not affect it, but lead to solution hardening of the matrix. Examples of alpha stabilizers: aluminum, oxygen, carbon, nitrogen. Beta stabilizers: molybdenum, vanadium, iron, chromium, nickel. Neutral hardeners: zirconium, tin, silicon. Beta stabilizers, in turn, are divided into beta-isomorphic and beta-eutectoid-forming. The most common titanium alloy is the Ti-6Al-4V alloy (in the Russian classification - VT6).

60% - paint;

20% - plastic;

13% - paper;

7% - mechanical engineering.

$15-25 per kilo, depending on purity.

The purity and grade of rough titanium (titanium sponge) is usually determined by its hardness, which depends on the content of impurities. The most common brands are TG100 and TG110.

The price of ferrotitanium (minimum 70% titanium) as of 12/22/2010 is $6.82 per kilogram. On 01.01.2010 the price was at the level of $5.00 per kilogram.

In Russia, titanium prices at the beginning of 2012 were 1200-1500 rubles/kg.

Advantages:

low density (4500 kg / m3) helps to reduce the mass of the material used;

high mechanical strength. It should be noted that at elevated temperatures (250-500 °C) titanium alloys are superior in strength to high-strength aluminum and magnesium alloys;

unusually high corrosion resistance, due to the ability of titanium to form thin (5-15 microns) continuous films of TiO2 oxide on the surface, firmly bonded to the metal mass;

the specific strength (ratio of strength and density) of the best titanium alloys reaches 30-35 or more, which is almost twice the specific strength of alloyed steels.

Flaws:

high price production, titanium is much more expensive than iron, aluminum, copper, magnesium;

active interaction at high temperatures, especially in liquid state, with all the gases that make up the atmosphere, as a result of which titanium and its alloys can only be melted in a vacuum or in an environment of inert gases;

difficulties involved in the production of titanium waste;

poor antifriction properties due to titanium sticking to many materials, titanium paired with titanium cannot work for friction;

high propensity of titanium and many of its alloys to hydrogen embrittlement and salt corrosion;

poor machinability similar to that of austenitic stainless steels;

high chemical activity, tendency to grain growth at high temperature and phase transformations during the welding cycle cause difficulties in welding titanium.

The main part of titanium is spent on the needs of aviation and rocket technology and marine shipbuilding. Titanium (ferrotitanium) is used as an alloying additive to high-quality steels and as a deoxidizer. Technical titanium is used for the manufacture of tanks, chemical reactors, pipelines, fittings, pumps, valves and other products operating in aggressive environments. Grids and other parts of electrovacuum devices operating at high temperatures are made from compact titanium.

In terms of use as a structural material, titanium is in 4th place, second only to Al, Fe and Mg. Titanium aluminides are very resistant to oxidation and heat-resistant, which in turn determined their use in aviation and automotive industry as structural materials. The biological safety of titanium makes it an excellent material for the food industry and reconstructive surgery.

Titanium and its alloys are widely used in engineering due to their high mechanical strength, which is maintained at high temperatures, corrosion resistance, heat resistance, specific strength, low density and other useful properties. The high cost of titanium and its alloys is in many cases offset by their greater performance, and in some cases they are the only material from which it is possible to manufacture equipment or structures capable of operating under given specific conditions.

Titanium alloys play an important role in aviation technology, where the aim is to obtain the lightest design combined with the required strength. Titanium is light compared to other metals, but at the same time it can work at high temperatures. Titanium alloys are used to make skin, fastening parts, a power set, chassis parts, and various units. Also, these materials are used in the construction of aircraft jet engines. This allows you to reduce their weight by 10-25%. Titanium alloys are used to produce compressor disks and blades, air intake and guide vane parts, and fasteners.

Titanium and its alloys are also used in rocket science. In view of the short-term operation of the engines and the rapid passage of dense layers of the atmosphere, the problems of fatigue strength, static endurance, and, to some extent, creep are removed in rocket science.

Due to insufficiently high heat resistance, technical titanium is not suitable for use in aviation, but due to its exceptionally high corrosion resistance, in some cases it is indispensable in the chemical industry and shipbuilding. So it is used in the manufacture of compressors and pumps for pumping such aggressive media as sulfuric and hydrochloric acid and their salts, pipelines, valves, autoclaves, various containers, filters, etc. Only titanium has corrosion resistance in media such as wet chlorine, aqueous and acidic solutions of chlorine, therefore equipment for the chlorine industry is made from this metal. Titanium is used to make heat exchangers that operate in corrosive environments, for example, in nitric acid (not fuming). In shipbuilding, titanium is used for the manufacture of propellers, plating of ships, submarines, torpedoes, etc. Shells do not stick to titanium and its alloys, which sharply increase the resistance of the vessel when it moves.

Titanium alloys are promising for use in many other applications, but their use in technology is constrained by the high cost and scarcity of titanium.

Titanium compounds are also widely used in various industries. Titanium carbide has a high hardness and is used in the manufacture of cutting tools and abrasive materials. White titanium dioxide (TiO2) is used in paints (such as titanium white) as well as in the manufacture of paper and plastics. Organotitanium compounds (eg tetrabutoxytitanium) are used as a catalyst and hardener in the chemical and paint industries. Inorganic titanium compounds are used in the chemical, electronic, fiberglass industry as an additive. Titanium diboride is an important component of superhard metalworking materials. Titanium nitride is used to coat tools.

With the current high prices for titanium, it is mainly used for the production of military equipment, where the main role belongs not to cost, but to technical characteristics. Nevertheless, cases of using the unique properties of titanium for civil needs are known. As the price of titanium declines and its production grows, the use of this metal in military and civilian purposes will expand more and more.

Aviation. The low specific gravity and high strength (especially at elevated temperatures) of titanium and its alloys make them highly valuable aviation materials. In the field of aircraft construction and the production of aircraft engines, titanium is increasingly replacing aluminum and stainless steel. As the temperature rises, aluminum quickly loses its strength. On the other hand, titanium has a clear strength advantage at temperatures up to 430°C, and elevated temperatures of this order occur at high speeds due to aerodynamic heating. The advantage of replacing steel with titanium in aviation is to reduce weight without sacrificing strength. The overall reduction in weight with increased performance at elevated temperatures allows for increased payload, range and maneuverability of aircraft. This explains the efforts aimed at expanding the use of titanium in aircraft construction in the manufacture of engines, the construction of fuselages, the manufacture of skins and even fasteners.

In the construction of jet engines, titanium is mainly used for the manufacture of compressor blades, turbine disks and many other stamped parts. Here, titanium is replacing stainless and heat-treated alloy steels. A saving of one kilogram in engine weight saves up to 10 kg in the total weight of the aircraft due to the lightening of the fuselage. In the future, it is planned to use sheet titanium for the manufacture of casings for engine combustion chambers.

In aircraft construction, titanium is widely used for fuselage parts operating at elevated temperatures. Sheet titanium is used for the manufacture of all kinds of casings, protective sheaths of cables and guides for projectiles. Made from alloyed titanium sheets various elements stiffness, fuselage frames, ribs, etc.

Shrouds, flaps, cable sheaths and projectile guides are made from unalloyed titanium. Alloyed titanium is used for the manufacture of the fuselage frame, frames, pipelines and fire barriers.

Titanium is increasingly used in the construction of the F-86 and F-100 aircraft. In the future, titanium will be used to make landing gear doors, hydraulic piping, exhaust pipes and nozzles, spars, flaps, folding struts, etc.

Titanium can be used to make armor plates, propeller blades, and shell boxes.

Titanium is currently used in aircraft construction. military aviation Douglas X-3 for plating, Republican F-84F, Curtiss-Wright J-65 and Boeing B-52.

Titanium is also used in the construction of civil aircraft DC-7. The Douglas company, by replacing aluminum alloys and stainless steel with titanium in the manufacture of the engine nacelle and fire barriers, has already achieved savings in the weight of the aircraft structure of about 90 kg. Currently, the weight of titanium parts in this aircraft is 2%, and this figure is expected to be increased to 20% of the total weight of the aircraft.

The use of titanium makes it possible to reduce the weight of helicopters. Sheet titanium is used for floors and doors. A significant reduction in the weight of the helicopter (about 30 kg) was achieved by replacing alloyed steel with titanium for sheathing the blades of its rotors.

Navy. The corrosion resistance of titanium and its alloys makes them a highly valuable material at sea. The US Department of the Navy is extensively investigating the corrosion resistance of titanium against exposure to flue gases, steam, oil, and sea water. The high specific strength of titanium is of almost the same importance in naval affairs.

The low specific gravity of the metal, combined with corrosion resistance, increases the maneuverability and range of the ships, and also reduces the cost of maintaining the material part and its repair.

Applications of titanium in the navy include the manufacture of exhaust mufflers for submarine diesel engines, measuring instruments, thin-walled pipes for condensers and heat exchangers. According to experts, titanium, like no other metal, is able to increase the life of exhaust mufflers on submarines. For gauge discs exposed to salt water, gasoline or oil, titanium will provide better durability. The possibility of using titanium for the manufacture of heat exchanger tubes, which should be corrosion resistant in sea water washing the tubes from the outside, and at the same time withstand the effects of exhaust condensate flowing inside them, is being investigated. The possibility of manufacturing antennas and components of radar installations from titanium, which are required to be resistant to the effects of flue gases and sea water, is being considered. Titanium can also be used for the production of parts such as valves, propellers, turbine parts, etc.

Artillery. Apparently, the largest potential consumer of titanium may be artillery, where intensive research is currently underway on various prototypes. However, in this area, the production of only individual parts and parts made of titanium is standardized. The rather limited use of titanium in artillery with a large scope of research is explained by its high cost.

Various parts of artillery equipment were investigated from the point of view of the possibility of replacing conventional materials with titanium, subject to a reduction in titanium prices. The main attention was paid to parts for which weight reduction is essential (parts carried by hand and transported by air).

Mortar baseplate made from titanium instead of steel. By such a replacement and after some alteration, instead of a steel plate from two halves with a total weight of 22 kg, it was possible to create one part weighing 11 kg. Thanks to this replacement, it is possible to reduce the number of service personnel from three to two. The possibility of using titanium for the manufacture of gun flame arresters is being considered.

Titanium-made gun mounts, carriage crosses and recoil cylinders are being tested. Titanium can be widely used in the production of guided projectiles and missiles.

The first studies of titanium and its alloys showed the possibility of manufacturing armor plates from them. Replacing steel armor (12.7 mm thick) with titanium armor of the same projectile resistance (16 mm thick) makes it possible, according to these studies, to save up to 25% in weight.

High-quality titanium alloys give hope for the possibility of replacing steel plates with titanium plates of equal thickness, which saves up to 44% in weight. The industrial use of titanium will provide greater maneuverability, increase the range of transportation and the durability of the gun. The current level of development of air transport makes obvious the advantages of light armored cars and other vehicles made of titanium. The artillery department intends to equip infantry with helmets, bayonets, grenade launchers and hand-held flamethrowers made of titanium in the future. Titanium alloy was first used in artillery for the manufacture of the piston of some automatic guns.

Transport. Many of the benefits of using titanium in the production of armored materiel apply to vehicles as well.

The replacement of structural materials currently consumed by transport engineering enterprises with titanium should lead to a reduction in fuel consumption, an increase in payload capacity, an increase in the fatigue limit of parts of crank mechanisms, etc. railways it is essential to reduce dead weight. A significant reduction in the total weight of the rolling stock due to the use of titanium will save in traction, reduce the dimensions of the necks and axle boxes.

Weight is also important for trailers. Here, the replacement of steel with titanium in the production of axles and wheels would also increase the payload capacity.

All these opportunities could be realized by reducing the price of titanium from 15 to 2-3 dollars per pound of titanium semi-finished products.

Chemical industry. In the production of equipment for the chemical industry, the corrosion resistance of the metal is of the utmost importance. It is also essential to reduce the weight and increase the strength of the equipment. Logically, it should be assumed that titanium could provide a number of benefits in the production of equipment for transporting acids, alkalis and inorganic salts from it. Additional possibilities for the use of titanium are opening up in the production of such equipment as tanks, columns, filters and all kinds of high-pressure cylinders.

The use of titanium pipelines can increase the coefficient useful action heating coils in laboratory autoclaves and heat exchangers. The applicability of titanium for the production of cylinders in which gases and liquids are stored under pressure for a long time is evidenced by the use in microanalysis of combustion products instead of a heavier glass tube (shown in the upper part of the image). Due to its small wall thickness and low specific gravity, this tube can be weighed on smaller, more sensitive analytical balances. Here, the combination of lightness and corrosion resistance allows for improved accuracy. chemical analysis.

Other applications. The use of titanium is expedient in the food, oil and electrical industries, as well as for the manufacture of surgical instruments and in surgery itself.

Tables for food preparation, steaming tables made of titanium are superior in quality to steel products.

In the oil and gas drilling industry, the fight against corrosion is of great importance, so the use of titanium will make it possible to replace corroding equipment rods less frequently. In catalytic production and for the manufacture of oil pipelines, it is desirable to use titanium, which retains mechanical properties at high temperatures and has good corrosion resistance.

In the electrical industry, titanium can be used for armoring cables due to its good specific strength, high electrical resistance and non-magnetic properties.

In various industries, fasteners of one form or another made of titanium are beginning to be used. Further expansion of the use of titanium is possible for the manufacture of surgical instruments, mainly due to its corrosion resistance. Titanium instruments are superior in this respect to conventional surgical instruments when repeatedly boiled or autoclaved.

In the field of surgery, titanium proved to be better than vitallium and stainless steels. The presence of titanium in the body is quite acceptable. The plate and screws made of titanium for fastening the bones were in the body of the animal for several months, and the bone grew into the threads of the screws and into the hole in the plate.

The advantage of titanium also lies in the fact that muscle tissue is formed on the plate.

Approximately half of the titanium products produced in the world are usually sent to the civil aircraft industry, but its decline after the well-known tragic events is forcing many industry participants to look for new applications for titanium. This material represents the first part of a selection of publications in the foreign metallurgical press devoted to the prospects of titanium in modern conditions. According to one of the leading American manufacturers of titanium RT1, out of the total volume of titanium production on a global scale at the level of 50-60 thousand tons per year, the aerospace segment accounts for up to 40 consumption, industrial applications and applications account for 34, and the military area 16 , and about 10 accounted for the use of titanium in consumer products. Industrial applications of titanium include chemical processes, energy, oil and gas industry, desalination plants. Military non-aeronautical applications include primarily use in artillery and combat vehicles. Sectors with significant use of titanium are the automotive industry, architecture and construction, sporting goods, and jewelry. Almost all titanium in ingots is produced in the USA, Japan and the CIS - Europe accounts for only 3.6 of the global volume. Regional end-use markets for titanium are quite different - the most striking example of originality is Japan, where the civil aerospace sector accounts for only 2-3 using 30 of the total titanium consumption in equipment and structural elements of chemical plants. Approximately 20% of Japan's total demand is for nuclear power and solid fuel power plants, the rest is for architecture, medicine and sports. The opposite picture is observed in the US and Europe, where consumption in the aerospace sector is extremely important - 60-75 and 50-60 for each region, respectively. In the US, traditionally strong end markets are chemicals, medical equipment, industrial equipment, while in Europe the largest share is in the oil and gas industry and the construction industry. The heavy reliance on the aerospace industry has been a long-standing concern for the titanium industry, which is trying to expand titanium applications, especially in the current downturn in civil aviation on a global scale. According to the US Geological Survey, in the first quarter of 2003 there was a significant decline in imports of titanium sponge - only 1319 tons, which is 62 less than 3431 tons in the same period in 2002. The aerospace sector will always be one of the leading markets for titanium, but we titanium industry must rise to the challenge and do everything we can to make sure our industry does not development and recession cycles in the aerospace sector. Some of the titanium industry's leading manufacturers see growing opportunities in existing markets, one of which is the subsea equipment and materials market. According to Martin Proko, Sales and Distribution Manager for RT1, titanium has been used in the energy and subsea industries for a long time, since the early 1980s, but only in the last five years have these areas become steadily developing with a corresponding growth in the market niche. With regard to underwater operations, growth here is primarily due to drilling operations at greater depth where titanium is the most suitable material. Its, so to speak, underwater life cycle is fifty years, which corresponds to the usual duration of underwater projects. We have already listed the areas in which an increase in the use of titanium is likely. Howmet Ti-Cast sales manager Bob Funnell notes that the current state of the market can be seen as growing opportunities in new areas, such as rotating parts for turbochargers in trucks, rockets and pumps.

One of our ongoing projects is the development of BAE Butitzer XM777 light artillery systems with a caliber of 155 mm. Newmet will supply 17 of the 28 structural titanium assemblies for each gun mount, with deliveries to the US Marine Corps due in August 2004. With a total gun weight of 9,800 pounds of approximately 4.44 tons, titanium accounts for about 2,600 pounds of approximately 1.18 tons of titanium in its design - a 6A14U alloy with a large number of castings is used, says Frank Hrster, head of fire support systems BAE Sy81et8. This XM777 system is to replace the current M198 Newitzer system, which weighs about 17,000 pounds and approximately 7.71 tons. Mass production is planned for the period from 2006 to 2010 - deliveries to the USA, Great Britain and Italy are initially scheduled, but it is possible to expand the program for deliveries to NATO member countries. John Barber of Timet points out that examples of military equipment that use significant amounts of titanium in their construction are the Abramé tank and the Bradley fighting vehicle. For the past two years, a joint program between NATO, the US and the UK has been underway to intensify the use of titanium in weapons and defense systems. As has been noted more than once, titanium is very suitable for use in the automotive industry, however, the share of this direction is rather modest - about 1 of the total volume of consumed titanium, or 500 tons per year, according to the Italian company Poggipolini, a manufacturer of titanium components and parts for Formula- 1 and racing motorcycles. Daniele Stoppolini, head of research and development at this company, believes that the current demand for titanium in this market segment is at the level of 500 tons, with the massive use of this material in the construction of valves, springs, exhaust systems, transmission shafts, bolts, could potentially rise to the level of almost not 16,000 tons per year He added that his company is just beginning to develop automated production of titanium bolts in order to reduce production costs. In his opinion, the limiting factors, due to which the use of titanium does not expand significantly in the automotive industry, are the unpredictability of demand and the uncertainty with the supply of raw materials. At the same time, a large potential niche for titanium remains in the automotive industry, combining optimal weight and strength characteristics for coil springs and exhaust gas systems. Unfortunately, in the American market, the wide use of titanium in these systems is marked only by the quite exclusive semi-sport model Chevrolet Corvette Z06, which can in no way claim to be a mass car. However, due to the ongoing challenges of fuel economy and corrosion resistance, the prospects for titanium in this area remain. For approval in the markets of non-aerospace and non-military applications, a joint venture UNITI was recently created in its name, the word unity is played up - unity and Ti - the designation of titanium in the periodic table as part of the world's leading titanium producers - American Allegheny Technologies and Russian VSMPO-Avisma. These markets have been deliberately excluded, said Carl Moulton, president of the new company, as we intend to make the new company a leading supplier to industries using titanium parts and subassemblies, primarily petrochemicals and power generation. In addition, we intend to actively market in the fields of desalination devices, vehicles, consumer products and electronics. I believe that our production facilities complement each other well - VSMPO has outstanding capabilities for the production of end products, Allegheny has excellent traditions in the production of cold and hot titanium rolled products. UNITI's share of the global titanium products market is expected to be 45 million pounds, approximately 20,411 tons. The market of medical equipment can be considered a steadily developing market - according to the British Titanium International Group, the annual content of titanium worldwide in various implants and prostheses is about 1000 tons, and this figure will increase, as the possibilities of surgery to replace human joints after accidents or injuries. In addition to the obvious advantages of flexibility, strength, lightness, titanium is highly compatible with the body in a biological sense due to the absence of corrosion to tissues and fluids in human body. In dentistry, the use of prostheses and implants is also skyrocketing - three times in the last ten years, according to the American Dental Association, largely due to the characteristics of titanium. Although titanium has been used in architecture for over 25 years, it wide use in this area began only in last years. The expansion of Abu Dhabi Airport in the UAE, scheduled for completion in 2006, will use up to 1.5 million pounds of approximately 680 tons of titanium. Quite a lot of various architectural and construction projects using titanium are planned to be implemented not only in the developed countries of the USA, Canada, Great Britain, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Singapore, but also in Egypt and Peru.

The consumer goods market segment is currently the fastest growing segment of the titanium market. While 10 years ago this segment was only 1-2 of the titanium market, today it has grown to 8-10 of the market. Overall, titanium consumption in the consumer goods industry grew at about twice the rate of the entire titanium market. The use of titanium in sports is the longest running and holds the largest share of the use of titanium in consumer products. The reason for the popularity of titanium in sports equipment is simple - it allows you to get a ratio of weight and strength superior to any other metal. The use of titanium in bicycles began about 25-30 years ago and was the first use of titanium in sports equipment. Ti3Al-2.5V ASTM Grade 9 alloy tubes are mainly used. Other parts made from titanium alloys include brakes, sprockets and seat springs. The use of titanium in the manufacture of golf clubs first began in the late 80s and early 90s by club manufacturers in Japan. Prior to 1994-1995, this application of titanium was virtually unknown in the US and Europe. That changed when Callaway introduced its Ruger Titanium titanium stick, called the Great Big Bertha. Due to the obvious benefits and well-thought-out marketing from Callaway, titanium sticks became an instant hit. Within a short period of time, titanium clubs have gone from the exclusive and expensive equipment of a small group of golfers to being widely used by most golfers while still being more expensive than steel clubs. I would like to give the main, in my opinion, trends in the development of the golf market; it went from high-tech to mass production in a short period of 4-5 years, following the path of other industries with high labor costs such as the production of clothing, toys and consumer electronics, the production of golf clubs went into countries with the cheapest labor first to Taiwan, then to China, and now factories are being built in countries with even cheaper labor, such as Vietnam and Thailand, titanium is definitely used for drivers, where its superior qualities give a clear advantage and justify more high price. However, titanium has not yet found very widespread use on subsequent clubs, as the significant increase in costs is not matched by a corresponding improvement in game. Currently, drivers are mainly produced with a forged striking surface, a forged or cast top and a cast bottom. Recently, the Professional Golf Association ROA allowed to increase the upper limit of the so-called return factor, in connection with which all club manufacturers will try to increase the spring properties of the striking surface. To do this, it is necessary to reduce the thickness of the impact surface and use stronger alloys for it, such as SP700, 15-3-3-3 and VT-23. Now let's focus on the use of titanium and its alloys on other sports equipment. Race bike tubes and other parts are made from ASTM Grade 9 Ti3Al-2.5V alloy. A surprisingly significant amount of titanium sheet is used in the manufacture of scuba diving knives. Most manufacturers use Ti6Al-4V alloy, but this alloy does not provide blade edge durability like other stronger alloys. Some manufacturers are switching to using BT23 alloy.

The retail price of titanium scuba knives is approximately $70-80. Cast titanium horseshoes provide a significant reduction in weight compared to steel, while providing the necessary strength. Unfortunately, this use of titanium did not materialize because the titanium horseshoes sparkled and frightened the horses. Few will agree to use titanium horseshoes after the first bad experiences. Titanium Beach, based in Newport Beach, California Newport Beach, California, has developed Ti6Al-4V alloy skate blades. Unfortunately, here again the problem is the durability of the edge of the blades. I think that this product has a chance to live if manufacturers use stronger alloys such as 15-3-3-3 or BT-23. Titanium is very widely used in mountaineering and hiking, for almost all items that climbers and hikers carry in their backpacks bottles, cups retail price $20-$30, cooking sets retail price approximately $50, dinnerware mostly made from commercially pure titanium Grade 1 and 2. Other examples of climbing and hiking equipment are compact stoves, tent racks and mounts, ice axes and ice screws. Arms manufacturers have recently begun producing titanium pistols for both sport shooting and law enforcement applications.

Consumer electronics is a fairly new and rapidly growing market for titanium. In many cases, the use of titanium in consumer electronics is not only due to its excellent properties, but also due to the attractive appearance of the products. Commercially pure Grade 1 titanium is used to make cases for laptop computers, mobile phones, plasma flat screen TVs and other electronic equipment. The use of titanium in speaker construction provides better acoustic properties due to titanium being lighter than steel resulting in increased acoustic sensitivity. Titanium watches, first introduced to the market by Japanese manufacturers, are now one of the most affordable and recognized consumer titanium products. World consumption of titanium in the production of traditional and so-called wearable jewelry is measured in several tens of tons. Increasingly, you can see titanium wedding rings, and of course, people wearing jewelry on their bodies are simply obliged to use titanium. Titanium is widely used in the manufacture of marine fasteners and fittings, where the combination of high corrosion resistance and strength is very important. Los Angeles-based Atlas Ti manufactures a wide range of these products in VTZ-1 alloy. The use of titanium in the production of tools first began in the Soviet Union in the early 80s, when, on the instructions of the government, light and convenient tools were made to facilitate the work of workers. The Soviet giant of titanium production, the Verkhne-Saldinskoye Metal Processing Production Association, at that time produced titanium shovels, nail pullers, mounts, hatchets and keys.

Later, Japanese and American tool manufacturers began to use titanium in their products. Not so long ago, VSMPO signed a contract with Boeing for the supply of titanium plates. This contract undoubtedly had a very beneficial effect on the development of titanium production in Russia. Titanium has been widely used in medicine for many years. The advantages are strength, corrosion resistance, and most importantly, some people are allergic to nickel, an essential component of stainless steels, while no one is allergic to titanium. The alloys used are commercially pure titanium and Ti6-4Eli. Titanium is used in the manufacture of surgical instruments, internal and external prostheses, including critical ones such as a heart valve. Crutches and wheelchairs are made from titanium. The use of titanium in art dates back to 1967, when the first titanium monument was erected in Moscow.

At the moment, a significant number of titanium monuments and buildings have been erected on almost all continents, including such famous ones as the Guggenheim Museum, built by architect Frank Gehry in Bilbao. The material is very popular with people of art for its color, appearance, strength and resistance to corrosion. For these reasons, titanium is used in souvenirs and costume jewelry haberdashery, where it successfully competes with such precious metals as silver and even gold. . According to Martin Proko of RTi, the average price of titanium sponge in the US is 3.80 per pound, in Russia it is 3.20 per pound. In addition, the price of metal is highly dependent on the cyclicality of the commercial aerospace industry. The development of many projects could accelerate dramatically if ways can be found to reduce the costs of titanium production and processing, scrap processing and smelting technologies, said Markus Holz, managing director of the German Deutshe Titan. British Titanium agrees that the expansion of titanium products is being held back by high production costs, and many advances in current technology need to be made before titanium can be mass-produced.

One of the steps in this direction is the development of the so-called FFC process, which is a new electrolytic process for the production of metallic titanium and alloys, the cost of which is significantly lower. According to Daniele Stoppolini, the overall strategy in the titanium industry requires the development of the most suitable alloys, production technology for each new market and application of titanium.

Sources

Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia, WikiPedia

metotech.ru - Metotechnics

housetop.com - House Top

atomsteel.com – Atom technology

domremstroy.ru - DomRemStroy

Eternal, mysterious, cosmic - all these and many other epithets are assigned to titanium in various sources. The history of the discovery of this metal was not trivial: at the same time, several scientists worked on isolating the element in its pure form. The process of studying physical, chemical properties and defining areas of its application today. Titanium is the metal of the future, its place in human life has not yet been finally determined, which gives modern researchers a huge scope for creativity and scientific research.

Characteristic

Chemical element is indicated in the periodic table of D. I. Mendeleev by the symbol Ti. It is located in the secondary subgroup of group IV of the fourth period and has serial number 22. titanium is a white-silver metal, light and durable. Electronic configuration atom has the following structure: +22)2)8)10)2, 1S 2 2S 2 2P 6 3S 2 3P 6 3d 2 4S 2 . Accordingly, titanium has several possible oxidation states: 2, 3, 4; in the most stable compounds, it is tetravalent.

Titanium - alloy or metal?

This question interests many. In 1910, the American chemist Hunter obtained the first pure titanium. The metal contained only 1% of impurities, but at the same time, its amount turned out to be negligible and did not make it possible to further study its properties. The plasticity of the obtained substance was achieved only under the influence of high temperatures; under normal conditions (room temperature), the sample was too fragile. In fact, this element did not interest scientists, since the prospects for its use seemed too uncertain. The difficulty of obtaining and research further reduced the potential for its application. Only in 1925, chemists from the Netherlands I. de Boer and A. Van Arkel received titanium metal, the properties of which attracted the attention of engineers and designers around the world. The history of the study of this element begins in 1790, exactly at this time, in parallel, independently of each other, two scientists discover titanium as a chemical element. Each of them receives a compound (oxide) of a substance, failing to isolate the metal in its pure form. The discoverer of titanium is the English mineralogist monk William Gregor. On the territory of his parish, located in the southwestern part of England, the young scientist began to study the black sand of the Menaken Valley. The result was the release of shiny grains, which were a titanium compound. At the same time, in Germany, the chemist Martin Heinrich Klaproth isolated a new substance from the mineral rutile. In 1797, he also proved that elements opened in parallel are similar. Titanium dioxide has been a mystery to many chemists for more than a century, and even Berzelius was unable to obtain pure metal. The latest technologies of the 20th century significantly accelerated the process of studying the mentioned element and determined the initial directions for its use. At the same time, the scope of application is constantly expanding. Only the complexity of the process of obtaining such a substance as pure titanium can limit its scope. The price of alloys and metal is quite high, so today it cannot displace traditional iron and aluminum.

origin of name

Menakin is the first name for titanium, which was used until 1795. That is how, by territorial affiliation, W. Gregor called the new element. Martin Klaproth gives the element the name "titanium" in 1797. At this time, his French colleagues, led by a fairly reputable chemist A. L. Lavoisier, proposed to name the newly discovered substances in accordance with their basic properties. The German scientist did not agree with this approach, he quite reasonably believed that at the discovery stage it is quite difficult to determine all the characteristics inherent in a substance and reflect them in the name. However, it should be recognized that the term intuitively chosen by Klaproth fully corresponds to the metal - this has been repeatedly emphasized by modern scientists. There are two main theories for the origin of the name titanium. The metal could have been designated in honor of the Elven queen Titania (a character in Germanic mythology). This name symbolizes both the lightness and strength of the substance. Most scientists are inclined to use the version of the use of ancient Greek mythology, in which the powerful sons of the goddess of the earth Gaia were called titans. The name of the previously discovered element, uranium, also speaks in favor of this version.

Being in nature

Of the metals that are technically valuable to humans, titanium is the fourth most abundant in the earth's crust. Only iron, magnesium and aluminum are characterized by a large percentage in nature. The highest content of titanium is noted in the basalt shell, slightly less in the granite layer. In sea water, the content of this substance is low - approximately 0.001 mg / l. The chemical element titanium is quite active, so it cannot be found in its pure form. Most often, it is present in compounds with oxygen, while it has a valency of four. The number of titanium-containing minerals varies from 63 to 75 (in various sources), while at the present stage of research, scientists continue to discover new forms of its compounds. For practical use highest value have the following minerals:

1. Ilmenite (FeTiO 3).
2. Rutile (TiO 2).
3. Titanite (CaTiSiO 5).
4. Perovskite (CaTiO 3).
5. Titanomagnetite (FeTiO 3 + Fe 3 O 4), etc.

All existing titanium-containing ores are divided into placer and basic. This element is a weak migrant, it can travel only in the form of rock fragments or moving silty bottom rocks. In the biosphere, the largest amount of titanium is found in algae. In representatives of the terrestrial fauna, the element accumulates in the horny tissues, hair. The human body is characterized by the presence of titanium in the spleen, adrenal glands, placenta, thyroid gland.

Physical Properties

Titanium is a non-ferrous metal with a silvery-white color that looks like steel. At a temperature of 0 0 C, its density is 4.517 g / cm 3. The substance has a low specific gravity, which is typical for alkali metals (cadmium, sodium, lithium, cesium). In terms of density, titanium occupies an intermediate position between iron and aluminum, while its performance is higher than that of both elements. The main properties of metals, which are taken into account when determining the scope of their application, are hardness. Titanium is 12 times stronger than aluminum, 4 times stronger than iron and copper, while being much lighter. Plasticity and its yield strength allow processing at low and high temperatures, as in the case of other metals, i.e., riveting, forging, welding, rolling. A distinctive characteristic of titanium is its low thermal and electrical conductivity, while these properties are preserved at elevated temperatures, up to 500 0 C. In a magnetic field, titanium is a paramagnetic element, it is not attracted like iron, and is not pushed out like copper. Very high anti-corrosion performance in aggressive environments and under mechanical stress is unique. More than 10 years of being in sea water did not change the appearance and composition of the titanium plate. Iron in this case would be completely destroyed by corrosion.

Thermodynamic properties of titanium

1. The density (under normal conditions) is 4.54 g/cm 3 .
2. The atomic number is 22.
3. Group of metals - refractory, light.
4. The atomic mass of titanium is 47.0.
5. Boiling point (0 C) - 3260.
6. Molar volume cm 3 / mol - 10.6.
7. The melting point of titanium (0 C) is 1668.
8. Specific heat of evaporation (kJ / mol) - 422.6.
9. Electrical resistance (at 20 0 C) Ohm * cm * 10 -6 - 45.

Chemical properties

The increased corrosion resistance of the element is explained by the formation of a small oxide film on the surface. It prevents (under normal conditions) from gases (oxygen, hydrogen) in the surrounding atmosphere of an element such as titanium metal. Its properties change under the influence of temperature. When it rises to 600 0 C, an interaction reaction with oxygen occurs, resulting in the formation of titanium oxide (TiO 2). In the case of absorption of atmospheric gases, brittle compounds are formed that have no practical application, which is why welding and melting of titanium are carried out under vacuum conditions. The reversible reaction is the process of dissolution of hydrogen in the metal, it occurs more actively with an increase in temperature (from 400 0 C and above). Titanium, especially its small particles (thin plate or wire), burns in a nitrogen atmosphere. A chemical reaction of interaction is possible only at a temperature of 700 0 C, resulting in the formation of TiN nitride. Forms highly hard alloys with many metals, often as an alloying element. It reacts with halogens (chromium, bromine, iodine) only in the presence of a catalyst ( high temperature) and subject to interaction with dry matter. In this case, very hard refractory alloys are formed. With solutions of most alkalis and acids, titanium is not chemically active, with the exception of concentrated sulfuric (with prolonged boiling), hydrofluoric, hot organic (formic, oxalic).

Place of Birth

Ilmenite ores are the most common in nature - their reserves are estimated at 800 million tons. The deposits of rutile deposits are much more modest, but the total volume - while maintaining the growth of production - should provide mankind for the next 120 years with such a metal as titanium. The price of the finished product will depend on demand and an increase in the level of manufacturability, but on average it varies in the range from 1200 to 1800 rubles/kg. In conditions of constant technical improvement, the cost of all production processes is significantly reduced with their timely modernization. China and Russia have the largest reserves, Japan, South Africa, Australia, Kazakhstan, India, South Korea, Ukraine, Ceylon also have a mineral resource base. The deposits differ in production volumes and the percentage of titanium in the ore, geological surveys are ongoing, which makes it possible to assume a decrease in the market value of the metal and its wider use. Russia is by far the largest producer of titanium.

Receipt

For the production of titanium, titanium dioxide, which contains a minimum amount of impurities, is most often used. It is obtained by enrichment of ilmenite concentrates or rutile ores. In the electric arc furnace, the heat treatment of the ore takes place, which is accompanied by the separation of iron and the formation of slag containing titanium oxide. The sulfate or chloride method is used to process the iron-free fraction. Titanium oxide is a gray powder (see photo). Titanium metal is obtained by its phased processing.

The first phase is the process of sintering the slag with coke and exposure to chlorine vapor. The resulting TiCl 4 is reduced with magnesium or sodium when exposed to a temperature of 850 0 C. Titanium sponge (porous fused mass) obtained as a result chemical reaction, refined or smelted into ingots. Depending on the further direction of use, an alloy or pure metal is formed (impurities are removed by heating to 1000 0 C). For the production of a substance with an impurity content of 0.01%, the iodide method is used. It is based on the process of evaporation of its vapors from a titanium sponge pre-treated with halogen.

Applications

The melting temperature of titanium is quite high, which, given the lightness of the metal, is an invaluable advantage of using it as a structural material. Therefore, it finds its greatest application in shipbuilding, aviation industry, missile manufacturing, chemical industries. Titanium is quite often used as an alloying additive in various alloys, which have increased hardness and heat resistance characteristics. High anti-corrosion properties and the ability to withstand most aggressive environments make this metal indispensable for the chemical industry. Titanium (its alloys) is used to make pipelines, tanks, valves, filters used in the distillation and transportation of acids and other chemically active substances. It is in demand when creating devices operating in conditions of elevated temperature indicators. Titanium compounds are used to make durable cutting tools, paints, plastics and paper, surgical instruments, implants, jewelry, finishing materials, and are used in the food industry. All directions are difficult to describe. Modern medicine, due to complete biological safety, often uses titanium metal. Price is the only factor that so far affects the breadth of application of this element. It is fair to say that titanium is the material of the future, by studying which humanity will move to a new stage of development.