1.Titanium and its characteristics

Titanium was discovered in 1910 and got its name from "Titan", a giant Greek mythology.
Titanium is a light metal composed of 60% iron, 4.5 g/. It is strong and highly resistant to corrosion. Titanium is bio-compatible because it is non allergenic.

2. Familiar material

Chinese woks:

Titanium is highly resistant to heat with a melting temperature as high as 1668. Its melting point is higher than that of steel. Although heat conductivity of titanium is almost the same as that of stainless steel, its weight is almost half of stainless steel's. Titanium is non-toxic and easy to clean. We recommend using Chinese woks made from titanium.


Piercing, watches and eye glasses:

Titanium appears many colors and is used in piercing, for brooches, tie pins and cuff links. It is very light and allergic reactions are almost nil.


Golf clubs:

With a titanium driver head, it is possible for the ball to travel longer distances. Changing the design of the golf courses is being considered due to this reason. The unit weight of the club is light and because the driver head has a thinner skull, the total weight of the club is light.
With a light-weight club, one can aim for a higher speed swing. Many golfers agree that because of a larger head and consequently, a wider sweet spot, titanium clubs are unbeatable. In 1997 iron clubs and putters made from titanium were introduced. Recently, many kinds of new titanium alloy heads have been developed. (For details, please refer to the documents of JTS).
There are new applications for titanium being studied.


Foods and tableware:

Titanium is non-toxic and since it does not dissolve (?) in salt water, it does not change the the taste of foods. Titanium is most appropriate for processing food and tableware. It is light strong and is a high-grade material.
Titanium is being used for some types of outdoor equipment and will be used even more in this area in the future.


Automobiles:

Titanium is being tested mainly in connecting rods and is very effective when used for moving parts. The use of titanium has resulted in significant fuel efficiency.


Architecture and Building Materials:

The Naya Temple in Fukui is famous in Matsuo Basho's 'Oku no Hosomichi'. (Matsuo Basho is a famous Japanese poet from the 17th century.)
The roof of the Naya Temple, the Fukuoka Dome, the Miyazaki-Ocean-Dome and the International Conference building at Tokyo Big Site (?) are some of the buildings made from titanium.

3. Most Common Applications

Chemical plants:

Titanium is highly corrosion resistant. It is used in many types of chemical equipment. About 30% of titanium used domestically is for chemical plants.


Seawater usage:

Titanium is greatly used in nuclear and fossil power stations. It is used for the big heat exchanger, CONDENSOR, which cools the steam form the turbine with seawater which does not corrode so the wall thickness of the tube is as thin as 0.5 mm. Condensor tubes consume about 20% of domestic titanium consumption.


Titanium in daily life:

Recently, titanium is being used in many goods we use such as in sports, building material, medical applications and accessories. This amounts to about 30% of domestic consumption.


Aerospace:

In the USA, about 70% of titanium produced is used for aerospace parts. In Japan only 2-3% of the titanium is consumed for aerospace usage. Thus, there is a big difference of market structure between Japan and USA.

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