Study of the properties of low-cost powder metallurgy titanium alloys by 430 stainless steel addition

• Low-cost titanium alloys produced by adding 430 stainless steel as alloying element.
• The behaviour of the low-cost titanium alloys powders during shaping is analysed.
• The features of the microconstituents of the low-cost titanium alloys are identified.
• Mechanical properties of the low-cost titanium alloys are measured.

Titanium is a lightweight metal with an outstanding combination of properties which make it the material of choice for many different applications. Nonetheless, its employment at industrial level is not widespread due to higher production costs with respect to competitor metals like steel and aluminium. In this work the production of low-cost titanium alloys is attempted by combining the utilisation of a powder metallurgy process and cheap alloying elements (i.e. commercial 430 stainless steel powder optimised for the powder metallurgy industry). Low-cost titanium alloys are fabricated by blending elemental titanium with stainless steel. The behaviour of the powders as well as that of the sintered materials are analysed and compared to that of a master alloy addition Ti6Al4V alloy. The produced low-cost titanium alloys show comparable properties to both wrought and powder metallurgy titanium alloys and, therefore, they are proposed as an alternative to obtain structural component made out of titanium alloys.