LKR achieves breakthrough in energy-efficient titanium forming

The LKR Light Metals Competence Center Ranshofen of the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology has achieved a technological breakthrough in the forming of titanium sheets (Ti-6Al-4V) as part of the COMET project ProMetHeus (sub-project “Titania”). Thanks to an innovative deep-drawing process at temperatures below 500 °C, considerable savings in energy consumption, time and costs have been achieved. A corresponding patent is about to be granted.

A woman and a man in blue work suits look at a metal part and stand in front of a machine

Titanium in aviation: indispensable, but challenging

Titanium remains a key material in the aviation industry due to its high specific strength, corrosion resistance and low density. At the same time, traditional forming processes pose enormous challenges: The superplastic forming (SPF) process used to date requires extremely high temperatures of 840 to 930 °C and not only causes high energy costs, but also the formation of the brittle “α-case” layer, which has to be removed at great expense.

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Innovation: deep-drawing below 500 °C

The LKR team has developed a new hot deep-drawing process in which titanium sheets are preheated to a temperature below the classic SPF limit and then formed. This method allows more cost-effective hot-work tool steels to be used as tool material instead of expensive nickel-based alloys. The reduced temperature also significantly reduces oxygen absorption, which largely prevents the formation of an α-case layer.

Initial test runs in 2022 already showed the successful deep drawing of a component with a depth of 44 mm. This depth has since been increased to 68.5 mm - the maximum depth of the test tool used.

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Strong results and industrial benefits

The optimized process control not only enables shorter preheating times and lower temperatures, but also proves high reproducibility - even with sheets with rougher surfaces, such as those provided by voestalpine BÖHLER Bleche GmbH & Co KG.

The mechanical properties are also impressive: an elongation at break of over 10% was achieved without additional heat treatment. Initial tests of a two-stage forming process were also successful, underlining the potential for more complex components.

Particularly noteworthy is the fact that the process does not require significant formation of the α-case layer - a considerable advantage over traditional methods.

Successful basis for industrial commercialization

Georg Kunschert, project manager of ProMetHeus-Titania, explains:
"Our novel technology offers numerous improvements over existing Ti-6Al-4V forming processes and represents a real success story within the COMET project ProMetHeus. The results to date form a promising basis for the industrial commercialization of this innovative titanium forming process - with great potential for industries such as aerospace, chemical apparatus engineering and medical technology."