GKN to develop titanium powders for aerospace

OREANDA-NEWS. GKN Aerospace, an airframe and engine components manufacturer, will work with UK academics and powder metallurgical companies on a three-year research programme to develop titanium powder for making near-net shape aerospace components.

The three-year, ?3.1mn (\$4.8mn) programme, called TiPOW (Titanium Powder for net-shape component manufacture) will also develop techniques and equipment to produce the powder consistently, in sufficient quantity and at a competitive cost. The TiPOW programme is backed by the UK's Aerospace Technology Institute, a public-private partnership institution formed in 2013 to advance market-oriented aerospace research and technology, and the country's innovation agency, Innovate UK.

Consortium partners include UK companies Phoenix Scientific Industries (PSI), a manufacturer of atomised titanium powders for additive layer manufacturing and hot isostatic pressing, and Metalysis, which produces titanium from rutile using the FFC electrolysis process. The University of Leeds is also a partner.

Metal powders currently in use have not been optimised for additive manufacturing and particularly for the specific requirements of aerospace applications. During the three-year study, TiPOW partners will investigate developing titanium alloys and powders with the characteristics that are specifically suited to additive manufacturing. They will then define the production methods that will ensure cost is minimised and production quality, quantity and consistency all meet the standards required by aerospace.

Metalysis has been producing commercial-purity titanium powder on a pilot scale by the electrolysis method that enables it to be manufactured directly from oxide feedstock. Its powder has been used by researchers at the University of Sheffield to 3D print automotive components. So far the company has mainly targeted non-aerospace sectors such as automotive and biomedical. The results of its participation in the aerospace additive manufacture programme will filter down to other applications, Dr Ian Mellor, the company's director of technology said.

Metalysis will provide Ti-6-4 (titanium–aluminium-vanadium) alloy and rutile-based pure titanium powders that will be subjected to chemical and physical testing to ensure that they are suitable for 3D printing. Research is expected to focus on both aerodynamic parts and engine components.

A variety of both traditional and new alloys will be produced by electrolysis from a mixed oxide feedstock. In addition to the standard Ti-6-4, the company is looking at other high-value alloys such as Ti-10-2-3 for high-fatigue resistance and titanium aluminides for heat-resistant applications. Titanium powder made by the electrolysis process could replace aluminium and steel in many aerospace applications, Metalysis chief executive Dion Vaughn said.

The TiPOW programme will also explore the effective reuse and recycling of titanium material, and a study of potential applications for the recycled material. The relatively high cost of titanium compared with aluminium and steel, and the loss of raw material in subtractive manufacturing processes such as forging and machining, are driving research into powder metallurgy and additive manufacturing (AM).

"To date research into AM has focused largely on evolving the processes we will require to enter full-scale production but if these processes are to make a significant breakthrough, the quality, repeatability and cost of the material we use will be critical," GKN's senior vice-president for engineering and technology Russ Dunn said. "Working with our industrial and academic partners in the TiPOW programme and leveraging expertise from across GKN, we will begin the process of addressing this issue."