In today's rapid development of science and technology, our lives are full of various high-tech products, and the materials used in these products often contain scientific mysteries. Apple's latest iPhone 15 phone has a special material for its shell - titanium. This material not only gives the phone a sturdy case, but also embodies the design concept of lightness and style. These properties of titanium make it more and more important in modern industry, and its applications go far beyond that.
Titanium (Ti), the silvery-gray transition metal, has a place in materials science with its unique physical and chemical properties. With an atomic number of 22, it is the ninth most abundant metallic element on the Earth's surface. Titanium's impressive melting point of 1668°C allows it to withstand extreme high temperatures, its excellent strength properties give it superior structural integrity, and its excellent thermal and electrical conductivity properties make it superior in terms of thermal and electrical conductivity. These excellent combined properties make titanium the best choice for many high-end applications.
However, it is not easy to take advantage of the advantages of titanium. In nature, titanium mostly exists in the form of oxides, which is why it does not appear as a pure metal until it is refined.
The discovery of titanium dates back to 1791, when the British amateur geologist William Gregor found some black sand in Cornwall, England, by a creek in the neighboring parish of Manakan.
Four years later, the German chemist Kraprot also discovered the oxide when he analyzed red rutile from Hungary. He advocated a naming of uranium, naming the new element "titanium" after the titan god "titanic" from Greek mythology. Chinese is named titanium according to its transliteration.
However, it was not until 1910 that American scientist Hunter first used sodium to reduce titanium tetrachloride to make pure titanium. In 1948, DuPont used the magnesium method to produce titanium sponge in tons - which marked the beginning of the industrial production of titanium sponge.
The applications of titanium are wide and far-reaching. Because it is about 50% stronger than steel, but only 60% denser than steel, it is known as the "air alloy". Compressor blades, turbine discs, guide rings, etc., due to the extremely high temperature of the working environment, need to resist the erosion from high-temperature gas, air and other corrosive media, withstand high cyclic stress in operation, and need to have excellent fatigue resistance, which is difficult for conventional alloys to meet the requirements. Titanium alloys such as TA6V and IMI834 have high melting point, excellent high-temperature strength and creep properties, and can maintain structural stability in high-temperature environments above 800°C, which are very suitable for the manufacture of high-temperature components such as aero engine compressor blades.
In addition, titanium is an extremely biocompatible material, which can come into harmless contact with human bones and tissues, so it has a wide range of applications in the field of medical implants.
This discovery can be traced back to the early 60s of the 20th century, when a Swedish doctor, Dr. Per-in**ar br Nemark, was conducting a study and accidentally discovered the strange phenomenon of titanium binding to bone. At that time, Dr. B.R. Nemark drilled a small hole in the tibia of a rabbit and drove a titanium nail into the bone with the intention of studying the bone healing process. However, to his surprise, a few months later, when he wanted to remove the titanium screw, he found that the titanium nail had completely integrated with the bone and could not be extracted. After further observation and experiments, he found that titanium exhibits excellent biocompatibility in living organisms, and is able to bond firmly with bone tissue without rejection.
Dr. B.R. Nemark embarked on a series of studies on the bonding of titanium to bone. In 1965, he succeeded in implanting an artificial tooth root made of pure titanium for the first time in the human body, which is considered the beginning of modern implant medicine. He also came up creatively"Osteosopherosis"This concept, ie:"An inorganic artificial implant that rigidly binds to a bony structure"。
In the following decades, people deepened the understanding of the biocompatibility mechanism of titanium, and developed a variety of titanium alloys, such as TA6V, Ti5553, etc., which are widely used in artificial joints, artificial tooth roots, spinal internal fixators, fracture internal fixators and other fields. Therefore, the application of titanium metal in biomedical implant systems has developed into a new research hotspot.
In everyday life, titanium is equally widely used. Titanium can be found in kitchenware, spectacle frames, jewelry, sports equipment, and even electronics such as mobile phones and camera cases. Titanium has good corrosion resistance and is not easy to rust or oxidize, which makes the pots and pans made of it can be used directly for cooking, and in 2023, various kitchenware companies will launch pots and pans made of titanium materials and begin to be on the shelves of major e-commerce platforms, selling more than one million pieces, and the main selling point is the uncoated pot body.
In the field of sports, titanium golf clubs, titanium bike racks and other equipment with light weight but high strength provide better performance for athletes. In the field of electronic products, the use of titanium alloys makes mobile phones, cameras and other products more strong and fashionable.