Basic situation of titanium metal

Titanium is a rare metal, why is it rare? It is because it is scattered in nature and is very difficult to extract.
But its content is relatively rich, ranking tenth among all elements. Titanium ore is mainly ilmenite and rutile, widely distributed in the crust and lithosphere. Titanium is also present in almost all living things, rocks, water bodies and soil. The extraction of titanium from the main ore requires the Kroll method or the Hunter method. The most common compound of titanium is titanium dioxide, which can be used to make white pigments. Other compounds include titanium tetrachloride (TiCl4) (used as a catalyst and used to make smoke screens or aerial text) and titanium trichloride (TiCl3) (used to catalyze the production of polypropylene). Titanium and titanium alloys are widely used in the aviation industry because of their low density, high strength, corrosion resistance, low temperature resistance, resistance, non-magnetic, non-toxic, tensile strength and other excellent properties. In addition, in the shipbuilding industry, chemical industry, manufacturing machinery parts, telecommunications equipment, cemented carbide, etc. has become increasingly widely used.

Development status of titanium metal in China’s titanium industry

Domestic titanium ore resources mainly include ilmenite rock ore, ilmenite ore and rutile ore, mainly distributed in Sichuan, Hebei, Yunnan, Hainan and other places, of which 98.9% are ilmenite and only about 1% are Rutile. Ilmenite ore is mainly vanadium-titanium magnetite, which is mainly distributed in Panxi, Sichuan and Chengde, Hebei, with reserves of about 150 million tons. It is the most important titanium ore resource in my country. Sichuan is the region with the most abundant vanadium-titanium magnetite resources in China, and the largest titanium concentrate supply base in China, Sichuan Panzhihua, provides 90% of the titanium concentrate on the domestic market. Ilmenite ore resources are mainly distributed in Yunnan, Hainan, Guangdong, Guangxi and other places, with reserves of about 5 million tons. Rutile mine resources are relatively small, mainly distributed in Henan, Shanxi, Hubei and other places, with reserves of about 2 million tons.

Although China has relatively rich titanium ore resources, primary ilmenite reserves account for 94.1% of the total titanium ore, but it is an associated mineral of iron ore, and its development and utilization are restricted by the development and utilization of its main mineral, iron ore, although After years of research, the comprehensive recovery rate of titanium resources can only reach about 26%, which is far from the developed countries. In addition, domestic proved rutile reserves are not many, mostly primary mines, and the grade is relatively low. my country’s ilmenite ore and rutile ore, regardless of resource reserves or production, account for a small proportion of titanium ore raw materials.

The development trend of titanium metal in China’s national titanium industry

The titanium industry belongs to the national strategic new material field. With the development of the economy and the expansion of the application field, in the future industry development, the demand will gradually increase. Temporary and structural overcapacity in the short term is normal.

(1) Technological innovation of titanium products

The development of the domestic titanium industry has benefited from national policy support for the titanium industry. The “Guiding Opinions of the General Office of the State Council on Creating a Good Market Environment, Promoting Non-Ferrous Metal Industry Structure Adjustment, and Promoting Transformation and Increasing Benefits” put forward the overall requirements, key tasks, and policy guarantees for solving the outstanding problems of China’s non-ferrous metal industry and promoting the sustainable and healthy development of the non-ferrous metal industry Clearly request to strengthen technological innovation, focus on the development of large-sized titanium and titanium alloy castings and coils to meet the needs of advanced equipment, a new generation of information technology, ship and marine engineering, aerospace, defense technology and other fields.

(2) The titanium industry is gradually becoming international and large-scale

Due to the in-depth advancement of the Belt and Road Initiative, trade between East and West has increased, and the integration of East and West markets is forming a unified world titanium market. Since 1996, Timet Corporation of the United States has merged with IMI Corporation of the United Kingdom and Cezus Corporation of France, controlling the European market. It has also merged with A. Johnson Metal Co., Ltd. of the United States, and with Europe’s largest tube company- French Valinox Welded Pipe Company merged to form Valitimet joint venture company. These merger measures greatly strengthened Timet’s strength.