The Age of Titanium

Although Titanium is an abundant element on earth it was not discovered until 1791 but it would be another hundred years after that before it was possible to isolate the metal.

In appearance the metal is grey and lustrous and has often been used to make alloys which are light and resistant. Titanium has also been detected in meteorites and in the moon rocks brought back from the Apollo 17 mission.

It is because of its desirable properties which make Titanium an ideal metal for this technological age that has lead to a huge rise in popularity of this metal.

In industry the uses for titanium are many because of its resistance to corrosion even from salt water, alkalis and acids and even corrosive gases. Because of its corrosion resistance and the fact that it is also physiologically inert and hypoallergenic, Titanium is also used extensively in the field of medicine and in particular for prosthetic implants such as hip and knee replacements.

This wonderful metal has very high strength to weight ratio and it is much utilised in critical and demanding applications such as in the aerospace industry. The use of Titanium has made space exploration possible and the earlier rockets such as Mercury, Apollo and Gemini were all made largely of this metal. The Space Shuttle also has many parts made from Titanium as have many jet fighters, submarines, ships and tanks.

Titanium therefore is used across a broad spectrum of applications making it very much a metal of our modern age.

Aircraft grade titanium is now becoming increasingly popular in the jewellery trade and has found favour particularly in the manufacture of mens jewellery because of it