Titanium properties - each one more exciting that the otherRegarding mechanical titanium properties, the most usual phrase you can hear is something about titanium being as strong as steel, but weighing half as much. As opposed to most things that are repeated so much that nobody questions them, this is actually true, the density of titanium being around 56 percent that of steel. Its strength can be further raised by alloying titanium with other materials. While not being lighter than aluminum, being twice as strong as it, titanium has become a very popular choice for aerospace and other industrial applications. Moreover, Titanium is among the few metals that have, along with the high strength that we already mentioned, a good impact resistance and ductility. Ductility is the ability of a material to endure physical transformation in a cold state, without being heat-treated or melted; operations that usually tend to alter the structure of the material and change titanium properties. This quality is very important for titanium jewelry industry. Its high resistance to corrosion is caused by the fact that the metal forms an adherent, non-porous and chemically inert thin layer of dioxide when entering in contact with the oxygen from the atmosphere. This makes titanium and its alloys corrosion resistant in most common environments and even is some that very aggressively attack most other engineering metals. And this chemical resistance is maintained to moderately high temperatures. When titanium does react with chemical agents, well that’s a completely story. It behaves as a girl that, when the right buttons are pushed, unveils some marvelous aspects of her personality. For instance, when titanium combines with oxygen it form a long series of oxides components and each of them exhibits a different hue. At short time exposures a rainbow-colored surface film is produced. If the agent pushing the button is nitrogen, a yellow-brown scale is formed on the surface as the nitride. Still, nitrogen will diffuse into titanium structure with a restricted depth of penetration. That is, titanium keeps its secrets. Return from Titanium properties to Titanium element Return to Titanium Home page New! CommentsHave your say about what you just read! Leave me a comment in the box below. |
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