SBIR Phase I: Production of Low-Cost Ti Alloys by Direct Reduction and Alloying

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响是解决美国的短缺或缺乏。通过开发新的低成本钛合金制造工艺技术，钛合金是国家航空航天、国防、运输、能源、化学和生物医学工业的关键材料。该项目将提高美国钛制造业的竞争力。此外，低成本钛将扩大其在汽车中的应用，有助于减少汽车的燃料（或电力）消耗和碳排放。传统上，钛（Ti）合金通过使用真空电弧重熔（VAR）熔化具有合金添加剂的纯Ti海绵来制造。钛海绵是由克罗尔工艺，这是一个多步骤的过程，涉及氯化二氧化钛（TiO 2）形成四氯化钛（TiCl 4），用镁（Mg）还原TiCl 4。钛合金锭的成本取决于钛海绵的成本和熔体精炼（例如，VAR）过程。通常，钛海绵占钛合金锭成本的70%以上。熔融精炼工艺也是显著的成本贡献者，因为Ti合金锭必须熔化两次或更多次以实现所需的纯度和成分均匀性。本项目拟开发一种低成本的无熔体工艺，通过直接还原和合金化（CVD）生产钛合金。如果成功的话，该工艺可以显著降低钛轧机产品的成本。该工艺的产品可用于许多应用，包括钛合金粉末，或作为原料制造钛轧机产品，或作为巩固的近净形components.This奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估的支持。

The broader impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to address the shortage or lack of the U.S.'s supply chain for primary titanium metal production, for which the U.S. relies on imports almost entirely, by developing new low-cost process technology for making titanium alloys. Titanium alloys are critical materials to the nation's aerospace, defense, transportation, energy, chemical, and biomedical industries. This project will enhance the competitiveness of the U.S. titanium manufacturing industry. Furthermore, low-cost titanium will expand its use in vehicles, contributing to reducing fuel (or power) consumption of vehicles and carbon emissions. Conventionally, titanium (Ti) alloys are made by melting pure Ti sponge with alloying additives using vacuum arc remelting (VAR). Ti sponge is made by the Kroll process, which is a multi-step process involving chlorination of titanium dioxide (TiO2) to form titanium tetrachloride (TiCl4), the reduction of TiCl4 by magnesium (Mg). The cost of Ti alloy ingot depends on the cost of Ti sponge and the melt-refining (e.g., VAR) process. Typically, Ti sponge accounts for more than 70% of the cost of Ti alloy ingot. The melt-refining process is also a significant cost contributor because Ti alloy ingot has to be melted for two or more times to achieve the required purity and compositional homogeneity. This project proposes to develop a low-cost melt-less process for the production of titanium alloys by direct reduction and alloying (DRA). If successful, the DRA process can reduce the cost of Ti mill products significantly. The product of the proposed process can be used for many applications, including as Ti alloy powder, or as feedstock for manufacturing Ti mill products, or as consolidated near-net-shape components.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.