The source of titanium element

Author：Time：2023-05-10Return to List

Titanium is present in the Earth's crust in a layer ten kilometers thick, reaching a concentration of six parts per thousand, which is 61 times more than copper. It ranks tenth in terms of abundance in the Earth's crust (the top 10 elements in the Earth's crust are: oxygen, silicon, aluminum, iron, calcium, sodium, potassium, magnesium, hydrogen, and titanium). If you grab a handful of soil from anywhere, it will contain titanium at a concentration of several parts per thousand. Titanium ore deposits exceeding 10 million tons in the world are not uncommon.

On beaches, there are tons of sand and gravel, and minerals such as titanium and zirconium, which are heavier than sand and gravel, are mixed among them. Over millions of years, the constant washing of the sea water has washed away lighter materials, leaving behind titanium iron ore and zirconium ore deposits, which form layers of titanium and zirconium ore along the coast. These ore layers are usually several centimeters to tens of centimeters thick and consist of black sand.

Titanium is non-magnetic, so submarines constructed of titanium do not need to worry about attacks from magnetic mines.

It was only in 1947 that people began to smelt titanium in factories, with a production of only 2 tons. By 1955, production had increased sharply to 20,000 tons. By 1972, annual production had reached 200,000 tons. Titanium has a hardness similar to steel but weighs almost half as much as steel of the same volume. Although titanium is slightly heavier than aluminum, its hardness is twice as great as aluminum's. Now, titanium is widely used in space rockets and missiles to replace steel. According to statistics, more than 1,000 tons of titanium are currently used annually for space exploration. Extremely fine titanium powder is also a good fuel for rockets, earning titanium the reputation of being a "space metal" or "cosmic metal".

Titanium has excellent heat resistance, with a melting point of up to 1,668°C. At room temperature, titanium can safely lie in various strong acid and alkaline solutions. Even the fierce acid known as "aqua regia" cannot corrode it. Titanium is also resistant to seawater. Someone once sank a piece of titanium to the bottom of the sea, and when it was retrieved five years later, it was still shiny, with many small animals and seabed plants attached to it, but no rust at all.

Nowadays, people have begun to use titanium to build submarines - titanium submarines. Due to its exceptional strength and ability to withstand high pressure, this type of submarine can navigate in depths of up to 4,500 meters.