Development of Low Cost Titanium Alloy Feedstock for Casting of Net Shape Combat Vehicle Components

Phase I established the initial technical feasibility and economic viability of Dynamet Technology’s Low Cost Feedstock Process (LCFP) for producing casting billet from titanium machine turnings. Dynamet demonstrated that castings produced from LCFP billet met AMS and ASTM specifications for Grade 5 Ti-6Al-4V castings. Properties comparable to wrought material were achieved and cost analyses showed significant potential savings in the cost of military and commercial castings over the use of conventional ingot. The Phase II work will involve the scale-up of the process for the production of the full-sized LCFP billets needed to produce selected cast and forged EFV components. These cast and forged EFV component prototypes will then be manufactured and evaluated. The evaluation will include nondestructive tests, (e.g. dye penetrant and X-ray), chemical analyses, mechanical tests, metallographic analyses and ballistic tests. In-depth cost analyses will be performed to verify the cost benefits of the LCFP and to demonstrate that these are benefits are sustainable. The recycling of titanium machine turning in the United States will be analyzed to demonstrate that there are sufficient sources of supply to support the requirements of the EFV over the long term.