Titanium and Titanium Alloys: What’s the Difference? Which One is Right for You?

When you choose titanium products, do you often have a headache about choosing pure titanium or titanium alloy? In fact, the properties of pure titanium and titanium alloys are different, so the application scenarios are very different.
This article will help you make the right choice.

Definition of Titanium and Titanium Alloys

• Definition of Pure Titanium

Pure titanium is also called commercial pure titanium, sometimes referred to as CP titanium. The titanium content of pure titanium can reach 99%. It is usually graded according to the magazine components contained in pure titanium. China’s pure titanium is divided into four grades: TA1, TA2, TA3, and TA4, which also correspond to American Standard Gr.1, Gr.2, Gr.3, and Gr.4. The higher the grade number, the higher its strength, but at the same time, its plasticity and ductility will decrease.

Pure titanium has excellent corrosion resistance and biocompatibility.

• Definition of Titanium Alloy

Titanium alloy is an alloy material made from titanium and other metal elements. The commonly added alloying elements include aluminum (Al), vanadium (V), molybdenum (Mo), chromium (Cr), tin (Sn), iron (Fe), etc.

Titanium alloys are generally divided into three types: α titanium, β titanium, and α-β titanium. It mainly depends on the titanium alloy composition.

α titanium alloy also includes: TA1, TA2, TA3, TA4, TA7 (Ti-5Al-2.5Sn), TA9 (Gr.7) and other grades. This alloy has excellent heat resistance (500-600°C) and welding properties. But heat treatment is not possible.

β titanium alloys include: TB2, TB3, TB5 (Ti-15V-3Cr-3Sn-3Al), TB6 (Ti-10V-2Fe-3Al), Ti-13Nb-13Zr, and Beta C (Ti-3Al-8V-6Cr-4Mo-4Zr) titanium alloys. This alloy is characterized by high strength and density, and good cold working forming performance.

α-β titanium alloys include: TC4 (Ti-6Al-4V), TC6, TC11 (Ti-6.5Al-3.5Mo-1.5Zr-0.3Si), TC16, etc. Among them, TC4 is also Gr.5 in the ASTM standard. This alloy has high strength, strong plasticity, and can be heat-treated, and is a titanium alloy with excellent comprehensive properties and widely used.

Overall, titanium alloys have higher strength and hardness than pure titanium.

The core difference between titanium vs titanium alloy

Types	Titanium	Titanium alloy
Corrosion resistance	Excellent corrosion resistance	Poor corrosion resistance
Strength and hardness	lower	Both strength and hardness are higher than pure titanium
Biocompatibility	Strong biological description	It is not as biocompatible as pure titanium
Toughness and plasticity	Pure titanium is easy to process and shape	Titanium alloys are slightly less malleable
Processing difficulty	Pure titanium is easy to machine	Titanium alloy processing is more difficult
Cost differences	lower	The cost is higher than that of pure titanium
Processing technology	Suitable for cold processing	Mainly hot processing

Core applications of Titanium vs Titanium Alloy

• Applications of pure titanium

Daily necessities: pure titanium water cups, pure titanium tableware, pure titanium outdoor products, titanium watch cases/straps, etc.

Medical field: dental implants, craniomaxillofacial restorations, etc. are usually made of pure titanium, and CP-Ti is generally used, including: TA1 (Gr1), TA2 (Gr2), TA3 (Gr3), TA4 (Gr4).

Chemical industry: This mainly uses the excellent corrosion resistance of pure titanium to manufacture desalination equipment, Electrolytic cell, heat exchangers, and marine pipelines, among others.

• Applications of titanium alloys

High-end consumer goods: titanium eyeglasses frames (Ti15333 titanium wire), titanium scooter handlebars (Gr9 titanium tubes), titanium bicycle frames (Gr9 titanium tubes), titanium trekking poles, titanium jewelry (TC4 titanium alloy is usually used), golf clubs/clubs.

Automotive industry: connecting rods, valves, suspension components, etc. for high-end sports cars and racing cars.

Medical field: surgical implants, cardiovascular stents, artificial bone plates, bone nails, surgical instruments, etc. Usually, TC4 materials are used more in these fields. Generally, TC4 titanium plates, TC4 titanium wires, TC4 titanium rods, titanium tubes, porous titanium plates/sheets, etc. are used.

Aerospace field: TC4 titanium alloy is used in engine components, aircraft skeletons, fasteners, landing gear, etc.

How to Select Titanium vs Titanium Alloy?

Choose pure titanium:

When you need titanium purity to reach 99%, pure titanium is the first choice.

When you need excellent corrosion resistance and biocompatibility, give preference to pure titanium.

For example, if you need titanium hangers or titanium racks for electroplating or anodizing, then it is best to make them of pure titanium Gr1 or Gr2. There are also titanium porous products for filtration and water treatment, including: titanium porous sheets, titanium porous discs, titanium fiber felt, titanium porous filter elements, etc. are all made of pure titanium material

Choose Titanium Alloy:

When you want to use high-strength titanium and excellent comprehensive performance, then choose titanium alloy. For example, TC4 titanium alloy (Gr5 titanium alloy). THT has many titanium alloy products, including titanium fasteners, titanium plates, titanium rods, titanium wires, titanium tubes, titanium scooter handles, titanium elbows, titanium flanges, etc.

When you need to heat treat or cold work, then titanium alloy is the best choice.

Conclusion

Pure titanium and titanium alloys have their own advantages, and when faced with a choice between the two, the most important point is what properties you need to use and combine with your budget and other requirements to make a better choice. Of course, you can also tell us what you want to use, and we can help you recommend suitable materials.

FAQ

6.1 I am looking for titanium racks for electroplating, what material is it in general?

It is usually made of Gr2 material with excellent corrosion resistance.

6.2 I need titanium wire to make titanium eyeglass frames, which grade should I choose?

Pure titanium and TB5 titanium alloys are often the best materials used to make titanium eyeglass frames. TB5 titanium alloy is also known as Ti15333 (Ti-15V-3Cr-3Sn-3Al) titanium material.

6.3 What are titanium scooter handlebars usually made of?

Gr9 (Ti-3Al-2.5V) material. Because the strength and processing performance of this material are very well balanced, and it is easy to bend and form, its welding performance and corrosion resistance are also good, and it also has excellent road shock absorption performance. Therefore, titanium bike frames and titanium scooter handles are usually made of Grade 9 titanium.

6.4 Pure titanium or titanium alloy, which is the most affordable?

The price of pure titanium Gr1 and Gr2 is usually cheaper, Titanium alloy prices are typically higher than those of pure titanium.

6.5 How many grades of titanium are there？

Titanium grades are classified according to industrial pure titanium and titanium alloys. Industrial pure titanium is divided into 4 grades, Gr1, Gr2, Gr3, Gr4. There are many grades of titanium alloy, including: Gr5 (TC4), Gr7 (TA9), Gr9 (TA18), Gr11 (TA10), Gr12, Gr23 (TC4 ELI), these are more common titanium alloy grades, in addition to many β types of titanium alloys, including: GR19 (TB2), Gr20 (TB3), Gr21 (TB5), and TB alloy series has Gr 25 -28.

6.6 Titanium alloy vs stainless steel, are they the same?

Of course not. The composition of titanium alloy is titanium and other alloying elements (aluminum (Al), vanadium (V), molybdenum (Mo), chromium (Cr), tin (Sn), iron (Fe), etc.). The composition of stainless steel is mainly iron and other alloying elements such as chromium (Cr) and nickel (Ni).

In addition, titanium alloy is very light and corrosion-resistant, and the price is expensive; Stainless steel is heavy, strong, and cheap. No matter pure titanium or titanium alloy, both you could contact us.