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How do the crystal structures of titanium change as temperature rises?
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metallurgy
A zinc-lead blast furnace and lead-splash condenser. This technology is utilized mainly for producing zinc while managing both lead and zinc from raw materials, a technique that was highly influential in 20th-century smelting.
In the solid state, pure titanium exhibits allotropic behavior, meaning its crystal structure changes based on temperature.1
- Alpha () phase: Below 883 °C (1,621 °F), titanium atoms align in a hexagonal close-packed (hcp) crystalline structure.231
- Beta () phase: Upon heating above 883 °C, the structure transforms into a body-centered cubic (bcc) arrangement, which persists up to the metal's melting point.231
In the context of titanium alloys, the temperature at which this transformation occurs can be significantly altered by the addition of alloying elements. Elements such as aluminum and oxygen act as alpha-stabilizers, while elements like vanadium, iron, and molybdenum act as beta-stabilizers. The specific temperature at which a 100-percent beta phase is achieved is known as the beta transus, which can range from 700 °C to 1,050 °C depending on the alloy's composition.2