Well-known Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo recently released a report pointing out that CNC has grown rapidly after Apple began to adopt it, and 3D printing may replicate this success story. Titanium is the most commonly used metal in 3D printing production, with a wide range of applications, such as medical and aerospace. Due to the high unit price of titanium, titanium metal parts produced by 3D printing are more cost-effective.
Titanium alloys are difficult to process and have low yields. Due to the characteristics of high strength, low thermal conductivity and high chemical activity. In terms of processing difficulty, the mechanical processing of titanium alloy is more difficult. Therefore, if cutting and grinding technologies are used, the demand for titanium alloy equipment is greater than that of aluminum alloy under the same number of workpieces and man-hour requirements. In terms of equipment and cutting tools, most of the titanium alloy products are currently processed by cutting and grinding technology, and the processing equipment is mainly CNC drilling and tapping centers, grinding machines, etc. Cutting tools and grinding tools are preferably made of PCD (diamond) and CBN (cubic boron nitride) materials.
1. Titanium alloy welcomes new developments in consumer electronics applications, and polishing equipment is highly deterministic
According to Jiemian News, Honor plans to release the folding screen V2 in July 2023, which will use titanium alloy technology on a large scale for the first time. It is mainly used in folding screen scroll devices to reduce the overall thickness and weight of the folding screen. In addition, Apple has a large reserve of titanium alloy patents, which have been laid out for a long time. According to PatentlyApple statistics, up to now, Apple has obtained 8 patents related to titanium alloy materials and has used the same Ultra name as the AppleWatch titanium alloy series in the iPhone 15 high-end series. Titanium alloy processing is currently dominated by cutting and grinding, and 3D printing is the new process direction. However, after the above two processes are completed, grinding machine equipment is required for polishing and grinding to improve the precision and smoothness of the workpiece.
2. Titanium alloy cutting and grinding process: the processing difficulty is greater than that of aluminum alloy, and the demand for equipment is large under the same requirements
Titanium alloys are difficult to process and have low yields. Due to the characteristics of high strength, low thermal conductivity and high chemical activity. In terms of processing difficulty, the mechanical processing of titanium alloy is more difficult: taking the middle frame of mobile phone as an example, according to Aibang polymer data, the overall yield rate of titanium alloy mobile phone middle frame is about 30%-40%, which is much lower than that of aluminum alloy middle frame 80% of that; and the processing time is long, about 3-4 times that of aluminum alloy. Therefore, if cutting and grinding technologies are used, the demand for titanium alloy equipment is greater than that of aluminum alloy under the same number of workpieces and man-hour requirements. In terms of equipment and cutting tools, most of the titanium alloy products are currently processed by cutting and grinding technology, and the processing equipment is mainly CNC drilling and tapping centers, grinding machines, etc. Cutting tools and grinding tools are preferably made of PCD (diamond) and CBN (cubic boron nitride) materials.
3. Metal 3D printing: a new direction for titanium alloy processing, which needs to be combined with the polishing process of CNC machine tools
3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, is a rapid prototyping technology. It is rapidly manufactured based on the three-dimensional model of the part, does not require special molds, uses powdered metal materials, and uses layer-by-layer printing to construct objects; it has the characteristics of high convenience, high precision, and low cost. The hot isostatic pressing (HIP) process can effectively eliminate metal 3D printing defects. In the field of titanium alloys, hot isostatic pressing can effectively improve the mechanical properties of titanium alloy workpieces, reduce the cost of titanium alloys, and improve production efficiency and material utilization. The main equipment of metal 3D printing is 3D printer;
Hot isostatic pressing equipment consists of high-pressure vessels, heating furnaces, compressors, vacuum pumps, cooling systems, etc. At present, Huawei and other mobile phone manufacturers have used 3D printing to produce titanium alloy structural parts. Metal 3D printing needs to be combined with the grinding and polishing process of CNC machine tools. 3D printed parts usually have a rough surface and require additional post-processing, such as machining, grinding or polishing, to obtain a high-precision smooth surface, and the main equipment is a grinding machine.
