Additive manufacturing of cp-Ti, Ti-6Al-4V and Ti2448

Despite titanium being the ninth-most common element in the earth's crust and the fourth-most abundant structural metal (after iron, aluminum, and magnesium), the high cost of reducing and refining the ore makes titanium an expensive material. Fortunately, it does possess an attractive set of properties, including high strength, low weight, and excellent corrosion resistance. Nonetheless, titanium is only used in applications where the high cost can be justified or at least tolerated. For example, the high specific strength makes the metal attractive to the aerospace industry while the high corrosion resistance sees it used in chemical processing equipment. In its commercially pure form, and in some titanium-based alloys, it is also biologically compatible in humans, which, combined with the corrosion resistance and high strength, make it attractive for biomedical devices.