Titanium Alloy Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Increased use in medical applications: Titanium alloys is the most popular material in orthopedics for parts that experience high, cyclic mechanical demand, especially stems and cups in articulations like the shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle where polymeric materials are not strong enough. In addition to this, titanium alloys has been used in dentistry for instruments, braces, abutments, screws, dental posts, and temporary devices. 
  
  Moreover, the use of titanium and titanium alloys in additional medical applications, such as cardiovascular devices, is facilitated by their mechanical strength and biocompatibility. Titanium alloys can create stents, heart valves, vascular grafts, portions of implantable defibrillators, pacemaker casings, and implantable sensors, making it vital in these devices. The American Heart Association reported that worldwide, more than 200,000 heart valve replacement procedures are carried out every year; by 2050, the number is expected to rise to 850,000. Therefore, as the demand for these biomedical devices continues to rise, the titanium alloys market is poised to benefit from this growth.
• Growing demand in the automotive industry: Numerous automotive components, including exhaust systems, turbochargers, and pistons, use titanium alloys. Their excellent strength-to-weight ratio, corrosion resistance, and resistance to heat make them superior to other metals. Since SUVs and lightweight vehicles are becoming popular, the use of titanium alloys in the worldwide automobile industry is on the rise. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) report, in 2023, about 14 million new electric vehicles were registered worldwide, increasing the total number of these vehicles on the road to 40 million.
  
  Also, the automotive industry is driven by favorable government laws on producing electric vehicles, which presents several growth potentials for titanium alloys manufacturers worldwide. Although improving vehicle performance continues to be the priority for automakers, buyers are also seeking vehicles that provide safety, reduce noise, maximize fuel economy, and continuously cut hazardous emissions. Notably, these goals are achieved by using titanium alloys, which are widely used in valve springs and suspension.
• Surge in technological advancements: The development of additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, is driven by the need for complexly shaped, high-quality metal components that can be delivered on time. The conventional technique for creating titanium alloys is powder metallurgy, but the newest technology is laser additive manufacturing. The benefits of 3D metal printing titanium-based components are reduced material loss, cost-effectiveness, and lightweight design. Additionally, the capability of additive manufacturing (AM) techniques to ensure complete material utilization and eliminate waste has been demonstrated through its use in processing titanium scraps.
  
  Furthermore, major manufacturers strive to provide sustainable and cost-effective solutions by using additive manufacturing. For instance, in April 2021, BEAMIT created a titanium Ti6242 additive manufacturing technique. For motorsport and aviation applications, the business demonstrated that the Ti6242 titanium alloys manufactured using additive technology outperforms alloys treated using traditional technologies.

Challenges

• Higher production cost: Titanium alloys production necessitates heavy machinery and equipment which usually involves extremely high operating costs. New players in the industry are expected to encounter challenges from the rising manufacturing costs due to the post-trade war price increase for titanium alloys between the U.S. and China. Furthermore, sustaining the titanium alloys supply chain in the midst of growing raw material costs may have a detrimental impact on the titanium alloys market. 
• Higher reactivity: From an engineering and industrial perspective, titanium's main drawback is its high reactivity, necessitating unique handling throughout the production process. It was originally nearly impossible to get rid of impurities that are added during the Kroll process, VAR, or machining. Therefore, this may hinder the titanium alloys market expansion.