Titanium is strong and low-density metal. These characteristics make titanium an indispensable structural material on an equal footing with iron, aluminum, and magnesium. Titanium's tensile strength at normal temperature exceeds that of many alloy sheets of steel.
The titanium characteristics depend largely on impurities. Nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon negatively affect its plasticity but increase the specific toughness. Hydrogen is a harmful impurity as it makes the material brittle. The quality of the alloy is determined by its specific content.
Russia is the second country after China to present the proven reserves of this metal, and the first country in the world by the amount of titanium produced in ingots and as rolled products.
The steel industry offers different titanium grades for different tasks:
Titanium ingots are the most convenient form for storage and transportation purposes. High corrosion resistance helps the metal keep its unchanged condition for a long time. Most often ingots come in a cylindrical shape. Following GOST, the diameter of the product may vary from 270mm to 440mm and from 800mm to 1350mm in length, and weight 175 - 900kg. The ingots are produced by single, double, or triple remelting in the arc vacuum furnaces, depending on the requirements to the quality ingot composition.
Titanium ingots are the major raw material for titanium rolled products. These are also used in the chemical industry, being an important component of polymer coatings with high mechanical resistance.
