The technical advantages and processes of titanium wire 3D printing

Titanium and its alloys (such as Ti-6Al-4V) have become one of the key materials for metal 3D printing due to their high specific strength, excellent biocompatibility and corrosion resistance. Among them, titanium wire 3D printing (such as arc additive manufacturing WAAM and electron beam fuse manufacturing EBWF) has attracted much attention because of its low cost and high forming efficiency. WAAM uses MIG/TIG arcs to melt titanium wires and stack them layer by layer, which is suitable for the manufacturing of large aviation structural components and ship parts. It has a low cost and a fast deposition rate (up to 5kg/h), significantly shortening the production cycle. EBWF uses an electron beam to melt titanium wire in a vacuum environment, reducing oxidation. It is suitable for high-precision aerospace components and medical implants, and has better mechanical properties, making it suitable for high-value components. Laser fuse (LMD) combines the simultaneous melting of laser and wire feeding, achieving high precision and can be used for complex curved surface repair and the manufacturing of precision parts.

Titanium wire 3D printing has demonstrated tremendous application potential in fields such as aerospace, medical implants, and industrial manufacturing. In the aerospace field, Boeing uses WAAM to print titanium alloy aircraft wing brackets, reducing the weight by 30% and shortening the production cycle by 50%. The high-temperature resistance performance of using EBWF to manufacture rocket engine combustion chambers is superior to that of traditional casting. This technology can reduce material waste and achieve complex topological optimization structures. In the field of medical implants, orthopedic implants and dental implants printed through EBWF and LMD have excellent biocompatibility and porous structures, which can promote the growth of bone cells and avoid "stress shielding". In the field of industrial molds and repair, the repair of titanium alloy inserts for automotive die-casting molds and worn parts of turbine blades has demonstrated the high-temperature stability and rapid repair advantages of titanium, significantly enhancing the thermal fatigue life and reducing repair costs.

Although titanium wire 3D printing has many advantages, it still faces some technical challenges. For instance, titanium is prone to react with oxygen and nitrogen at high temperatures, and the oxidation problem can be solved by the argon protection of WAAM and the vacuum environment of EBWF. High residual stress may lead to deformation or cracking, which can be alleviated by optimizing the printing path and hot isostatic pressing (HIP) treatment. High surface roughness can be improved through hybrid manufacturing (combined with CNC milling and polishing). If the consistency requirement of the wire material is high, a high-precision wire feeding system should be used. In the future, titanium wire 3D printing will develop towards low-cost, intelligent processes, multi-material printing and green manufacturing, such as developing low-cost titanium alloy wire materials, using AI to monitor the status of the molten pool in real time, manufacturing titanium-copper and other composite wire materials, and recycling titanium waste to prepare 3D printing wire materials. With the optimization of processes and the development of new materials, the application scope of titanium wire 3D printing will further expand and become one of the core technologies in high-end manufacturing.

Fortu Tech can produce and process Titanium billet, Titanium sheet, Titanium foil, Titanium plate, Titanium rod, Titanium wire, Titanium tubes.