Sustainability of a Novel Low-Cost Process for Making Spherical Titanium Alloy Powders for Additive Manufacturing

Abstract

Titanium (Ti) is often a preferred metal for its superior strength-to-weight ratio, corrosion resistance, bio-compatibility, and its high melting point. Despite these advantages, titanium’s high cost and high environmental burden have relegated its use almost exclusively to niche, high-dollar applications such as the aerospace and medical sectors. The rise of additive manufacturing has brought with it an increasing demand for low-cost and sustainable spherical Ti-6Al-4V (Ti64) metal powders. Current commercial spherical Ti64 powders are produced through melt atomization techniques, which are not suitable for recycling Ti scrap with high oxygen content, and thus are not adequate for achieving corporate and consumer sustainability goals. A novel technique for production of such powders from high oxygen Ti scraps has been developed using Hydrogen Assisted Metallothermic Reduction (HAMR) technology to minimize oxygen content. This approach has the potential to substantially decarbonize the global titanium metal industry.