A look at Titanium

Posted in Reflections on 9th September 2010

William Rowland are a leading supplier of Titanium.

There is some debate as to who actually named the element, was it named by The Reverend William Gregor the original discoverer or by the German chemist Martin Heinrich Klaproth who found it later in the same year of 1791. Whichever is the case it was named after the Titans, sons in Greek Mythology of Gaia and Uranus and is now universally known as titanium.

The Reverend made the discovery in Cornwall in 1791 finding the new element present in Ilmenite ore.

Later in the same year, 1791, its presence was found in Rutile ore by a German chemist, Martin Heinrich Klaproth, however it would take until 1910 for the pure elemental metal to be produced by Matthew Hunter.

Extraction of the metal from the ore body is achieved by either the Kroll or Hunter process. Titanium compounds are used in many applications as catalysts and also for the production of white pigments in the case of titanium dioxide, whilst titanium trichloride is used in the production of polypropylene.

The metal plays a very important part of the aerospace industry with its wide range of properties characterised by their low density, strength and corrosion resistance. In its un-alloyed state titanium can be as strong as certain grades of steel with the advantage of being roughly 45% lighter.

When titanium is alloyed with other metals, notably aluminium, iron, vanadium and molybdenum they combine to produce a vast range of lightweight but very strong ferro alloys for an enormous amount of applications; Jet engines, spacecraft, medical implants, industrial, agricultural, military and automotive applications even finding their way into mobile phones, the list is endless and on going.

William Rowland Ltd are titanium suppliers, and if you would like to find out how we can meet your requirements, please contact us using the Quick Enquiry Form on the right-hand side of this website.

Tags: Metal Powders News, Titanium News