DuPont develops new process for making titanium

DuPont today announced a new process for making high-purity titanium metal powder that it said could reduce cost and substantially boost efficiency in parts manufacturing. Titanium is a strong, lightweight and durable metal, but has long been reserved for applications that could justify its historical high cost.

The new process, developed with Honeywell Electronic Materials, makes titanium metal powder, which can then be pressed into desired shapes. It will allow manufacturers to make parts faster, with less machining and significantly less scrap, while yielding virtually the same strength and weight characteristics as machined titanium, the company said.

To make complicated parts from the alloy, manufacturers currently must machine them from large, solid pieces of titanium, a process that creates large amounts of scrap. For example, parts manufacturers in the aerospace industry often must buy approximately eight times more titanium than will be in the finished part, a process that is only about 13 percent efficient, the company said. According to the company, the powder form of the metal can be converted with nearly 90 percent efficiency, depending upon the complexity of the part.

DuPont will market the titanium powder and is working with a number of manufacturers in the aerospace, military, automotive and chemical processing industries on parts designs made feasible by the new material's affordability. Commercial quantities are expected to be available in October. Applications range from military uses such as howitzers and missile steering mechanisms to sporting goods components such as bicycle sprockets.