TI · titanium
Titanium Grade 2 (commercially pure)
The easiest titanium to cut and still awkward by steel standards. Softer and gummier than Ti-6Al-4V, so it smears rather than work-hardens - the opposite problem in the same family.
Quoting this material
- Typical lead time
- 10–15 working days
- Condition
- Annealed
- Achievable finish
- Ra 1.6 µm typical · Ra 0.4 µm best
Machined in-house to your drawing: see the precision CNC machining service and the machine and inspection capability it runs on.
Machinability
Our own 1–10 shop ranking, not a published index: 10 is free-cutting brass C360, 1 is Inconel 718. It ranks how a material behaves on the floor - cycle time, chip control and tool life together. Where a published index exists it is quoted in the note.
The easiest titanium to cut and still awkward by steel standards. Softer and gummier than Ti-6Al-4V, so it smears rather than work-hardens - the opposite problem in the same family.
Properties as supplied
| Parameter | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Tensile strength | 345 | MPa |
| Yield strength (0.2%) | 275 | MPa |
| Elongation | 20 | % |
| Hardness | 150 | HV |
| Thermal conductivity | 16.4 | W/m·K |
| Modulus of elasticity | 102.7 | GPa |
Hardness, tensile and thermal figures are typical published values for the condition stated. Actual mill certificates govern; send the specification with the drawing and we confirm against the certificate before the material is cut.
Condition
Annealed
Heat treatment
Not hardenable by heat treatment - it is commercially pure. Annealing relieves stress after welding or heavy forming; that is the only thermal operation it takes.
Achievable surface finish
Ra 1.6 µm
Ra 0.4 µm
Finishes cleanly with sharp tooling. Any contamination from a worn tool is a corrosion site later, so the tool has to stay sharp for the last pass too.
Tooling and cutting parameters
Cutting speed
- 60–120 m/min (carbide)
Feed
- 0.10–0.25 mm/rev turning · 0.08–0.15 mm/tooth milling
Tooling
- Uncoated fine-grain carbide, sharp positive geometry, large chip clearance
Coolant
- High-pressure flood; never cut it dry and never use a chlorine-based coolant
Starting points for carbide on a rigid setup, not a guarantee. The right numbers depend on the machine, the toolholder and the fixturing - ask and we will say what we would actually run.
Typical applications
- Chemical process vessels and fittings
- Heat exchanger tubesheets and liners
- Desalination and seawater components
- Medical instrument bodies
- Anodised architectural hardware
DFM notes for this grade
- Never use a chlorinated cutting fluid - titanium is stress-corrosion sensitive and a chlorine residue is a crack initiation site
- The low modulus is the real design constraint: a titanium part deflects three times as much as a steel one under the same load, so stiffness, not strength, decides the section
- Welding requires an inert atmosphere on both sides; a contaminated weld is brittle and hard to repair
Questions buyers ask
- Why use Grade 2 rather than Ti-6Al-4V?
- Corrosion resistance and weldability. Grade 2 is far more ductile and formable, welds easily, and resists the same chemicals. If the part does not carry structural load, the alloy strength of 6Al-4V buys nothing and costs more to machine.
- Does Grade 2 machine more easily than Ti-6Al-4V?
- Somewhat, and differently. 6Al-4V is hard and work-hardens; Grade 2 is soft and gummy, so it builds up on the edge and tears if the tool is not sharp. The feeds are similar, the failure mode is not.
Grades we would quote instead
Grade 4
4/10The strongest of the commercially pure grades - roughly the strength of a mild steel with the corrosion resistance of titanium, and about as hard to cut as a stainless.
Ti-6Al-4V
3/10The alloy the whole titanium reputation comes from.
Grade 7
4/10Grade 2 chemistry with a small palladium addition.