What Are The Effective Solutions To Process Defects in Titanium Wire Manufacturing?

 

Titanium wire is an important titanium processed material, and its preparation includes multiple complex processes such as smelting, forging, rolling, drawing, and heat treatment. Loss of control over process parameters or equipment status in any link may lead to defects. It may affect the mechanical properties, surface quality, and service safety of titanium wire.

 

Titanium wires with different grades in Ruihang

 

• Surface Defects: Affect appearance, corrosion resistance, and fatigue life, including cracks, scratches, oxide scale, pitting, and peeling.

 

• Internal Structural Defects: Determine mechanical properties and require metallographic testing, including coarse grains, uneven structure, pores and inclusions, and abnormal phase transformation.

 

• Dimensional Accuracy Deviation: Exceeded standards in diameter, roundness, straightness, etc., caused by improper processing parameters and insufficient equipment precision.

 

 

(I) Surface Defects

• Cracks

Optimize drawing: The single deformation amount ≤ 20%, and adjust the speed according to the material.

Improve heat treatment: Heat pure titanium at 550-650℃ with stepwise heating and cooling.

Strictly control raw materials: Reject defective titanium ingots, and grind + pickle the billets before drawing.

 

• Scratches

Equipment maintenance: Regularly clean, replace worn dies/rolls, and remove impurities.

Die optimization: Match the die hole with the specification, and the inner wall roughness Ra ≤ 0.2μm.

Standardize processes: Adjust the roller spacing and reasonably select lubricants to reduce friction.

 

• Oxide Scale

Atmosphere protection: Use ≥99.99% argon/nitrogen for high-temperature processing to ensure stable flow and furnace body sealing.

Parameter optimization: Reduce processing temperature and shorten high-temperature residence time.

Pickling treatment: After high temperature, perform mixed pickling with hydrofluoric acid + nitric acid, followed by rinsing with clean water and drying.

 

• Pitting and Peeling

Billet quality inspection: Strengthen surface inspection and remove defects by grinding/turning.

Process optimization: Ensure uniform drawing deformation and strictly control the quality and dosage of lubricants.

Post-treatment: Polish the surface after drawing to eliminate slight pitting.

 

(II) Internal Structural Defects

• Coarse Grains: Strictly control processing/heat treatment temperature; accumulate multiple passes of small deformation; perform solution + aging refinement for workpieces with coarse grains.

 

• Uneven Structure: Optimize drawing/rolling processes; heat uniformly and extend heat preservation time; conduct intermediate annealing after each drawing pass.

 

• Pores and Inclusions: Strictly control raw material/crucible cleanliness during vacuum smelting; eliminate defective billets through ultrasonic testing; regularly clean equipment to prevent foreign matter from mixing.

 

• Abnormal Phase Transformation: Precisely control heat treatment parameters and select cooling methods; perform isothermal heat preservation in the phase transformation interval; conduct atmosphere protection + equipment temperature control calibration (error ≤ ±5℃).

 

(III) Dimensional Accuracy Deviation

1.Optimize Process Parameters: Design wire drawing die holes according to the specification and material of titanium wire, adopt multiple passes of small deformation drawing, and control the drawing speed fluctuation ≤ ±0.5m/min; accurately adjust the rolling roll gap and maintain consistent speed during rolling to avoid dimensional deviation.

 

2.Improve Equipment Precision: Regularly calibrate and maintain drawing machines, rolling mills, heat treatment furnaces and other equipment, focusing on calibrating tension control, roll gap adjustment, and temperature control systems; check the straightness and finish of the conveying roller table, and adjust the position in a timely manner to ensure stable conveying of titanium wire.

 

3.Strengthen Process Monitoring: Add dimensional inspection after key processes, use a diameter gauge with precision ≤ ±0.001mm to detect the diameter and roundness of titanium wire, and use a laser straightness measuring instrument to detect straightness; adjust the process in a timely manner when there is a deviation; straighten the bent titanium wire with a straightening machine after heat treatment to ensure the straightness deviation ≤ 0.5mm/m.

 

4.Control Heat Treatment Deformation: Optimize the cooling process and adopt uniform cooling to avoid local excessive deformation; fix titanium wire of easily deformable specifications with fixtures during heat treatment to reduce cooling deformation.

 

Ruihang Group, a professional manufacturer of titanium and titanium alloy products, implements strict quality control throughout the entire production process from raw materials to finished products. We supply high-quality titanium wires,bars, plates and other titanium products etc. For more details,please contact us via the Email: Sam.Rui@bjrh-titanium.com