A Low Cost Electrolytic Process to Produce Titanium Alloy From Ti02-MxOy

The production of titanium is by the Kroll process, which is mature, yet expensive, limiting titanium?s usages. Titanium alloys are produced by mixing the alloying elements with Kroll pure titanium and performing several vacuum remelts to reduceinterstitial contaminants. Electrolysis to produce titanium has significant potential but has not been perfected to produce acceptable purity and low cost from any titanium precursor compound. A unique electrolytic process of utilizing a composite Ti02electrode has been demonstrated to produce high purity titanium, as well as co-reduce other oxide compounds to their elemental form, thus electrolytically producing titanium alloys directly. The electrolytically produced titanium alloy powder can bemelt-free consolidated to billets for forming into titanium products at only a few dollars per pound. This program will demonstrate producing titanium alloy powder by unique electrolysis from Ti02-Mx0y composite electrodes. The titanium alloy powder willbe melt-free transformed to Grade 5 Ti-6A1-4V for well under $9.00/lb. finished part. Electrolytically producing high purity titanium alloy powder directly from Ti02/rutile at only a few dollars per pound constitutes a breakthrough, which has the potentialto expand the market for titanium by several orders of magnitude. Expanded markets include armor, automotive, aerospace, chemical process/corrosion resistance, etc.