Baoji titanium alloy plate manufacturers introduce titanium plate metallurgical technology suitable for the automotive industry
Titanium plate has the characteristics of low density, high specific strength, corrosion resistance, etc., and has huge application potential in the automotive industry. The use of titanium and titanium alloys in automobiles can save fuel, reduce engine noise and vibration, and increase service life. However, for a long time, the materials used in automobiles have been steel, aluminum and other materials from all over the country. In order for titanium to enter the automotive market, in addition to its own functional advantages, it must further reduce its cost to a level acceptable to the automotive industry. Titanium plate metallurgical parts for automobiles are a promising category. However, due to the limitation of cost and other factors, the application and development are slow. Choosing leading titanium plate metallurgy technology to prepare titanium plate metallurgical parts can not only greatly reduce the cost, but also help the promotion of titanium and its alloys in the automotive industry, making it a major application category second only to the aerospace industry. The development of low-cost titanium and its alloy titanium plates can provide low-cost materials for automotive titanium plate metallurgical parts. Judging from the existing skills, the sponge Ti powder method, the hydrogenation dehydrogenation method and the metal hydride restoration method are suitable for the automotive industry.
1. Sponge Ti powder method
This is currently a way to meet the needs of the automotive industry for titanium plates in terms of cost. First, use traditional sponge titanium and the remaining material in the process to break it; the resulting titanium plates are often thicker and rich in chlorine. However, it is difficult to separate this fine powder from magnesium chloride and has a high oxygen content. Experiments show that for every 100 grams of magnesium and 400 grams of titanium tetrachloride, about 100 grams of titanium powder with a particle size of tens of microns can be prepared, the production capacity has been doubled, and the cost has been reduced by 50%. It is expected to be used as a material for titanium plate metallurgical titanium products.
2. Hydrodehydrogenation method
This method has become the main method for preparing titanium powder at home and abroad due to its wide particle size planning, low cost, non-strict material requirements, and easy process completion. After years of improvement and implementation, this method has become the main method for preparing titanium powder at home and abroad. However, the titanium plates prepared by this method often have high O and N content. The Northwest Nonferrous Metals Research Institute selects hydrodehydrogenation technology to dehydrogenate the ingots to prepare high-quality titanium plates with low O, N, and Cl content, which have outstanding functions. At present, titanium plates with an O content of less than 0.20% have been produced, and mass production has been completed. It is expected to provide stable titanium plates for metallurgical parts of titanium plates for automobiles. Toho Titanium Industry Co., Ltd. has prepared titanium powder with a particle size of less than 150 microns and an oxygen content of less than 0.15%.
Three, metal hydride restoration method
TiCl4 can be restored with hydrogen at 3500°C, and TiO2 can be restored with carbon heat above 1800°C. Because this method does not have Cl element to participate in the reaction, it is possible to obtain a titanium plate with extremely low Cl content. I heard that its cost is only one third of the traditional hydrogenation dehydrogenation method, and it is now at the level of planned production. Although the Ti powder produced by this method has a higher H content, it is reported that the presence of a small amount of H is beneficial to the sintering of the titanium plate and the improvement of the microscopic arrangement, and can be completely removed in the subsequent vacuum sintering and annealing process.
