IperionX wins US Air Force recycling challenge to produce titanium powders

January 18, 2023

IperionX will be eligible to produce titanium metal powders for the AFRL from scrap materials (Courtesy IperionX)
IperionX will be eligible to produce titanium metal powders for the AFRL from scrap materials (Courtesy IperionX)

IperionX Ltd., Charlotte, North Carolina, has won the US Department of Defense’s National Security Innovation Network (NSIN) Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Grand Challenge contract. As a result, IperionX will be eligible to produce titanium metal powders from scrap materials and rejuvenate used or out-of-specification Ti powder for the AFRL.

Winning this Grand Challenge against a field of titanium industry participants is said to be an important validation of IperionX’s patented technologies to produce circular, low-carbon and lower cost titanium metal from 100% recycled titanium scrap or out-of-specification titanium powder feedstocks.

The US Air Force and US Department of Defense are accelerating the use of Additive Manufacturing to reduce long lead cycle times and produce large volumes of complex parts for advanced weapons systems.

Typically, only 20%-40% of titanium powder used in AM ends up in fabricated parts. Ti metal powders are typically reused a limited number of times before the quality is compromised by elevated contaminant levels or inferior powder morphology. Out-of-specification Ti powders increase the probability of defects and jeopardize the structural integrity of additively manufactured components.

Titanium produced by the current Kroll Process is high carbon, energy intensive and expensive. Companies across the defence, automotive, consumer electronics and luxury goods sectors want to source low carbon, low-cost titanium from traceable recycled sources. IperionX’s patented technologies offer a pathway to significantly lower cost, and lower carbon, Ti powders for components in these industries.

The patented technologies were developed by Dr Zak Fang, an American Professor of Metallurgical Engineering at the University of Utah, and enables IperionX to upcycle a wide variety of low-grade, high-oxygen Ti scrap which has historically been downcycled to lower value markets. IperionX is able to achieve greater yields of nearly 100% from low-grade scrap without the need for blending the scrap with high-grade primary metal.

Winning the Grand Challenge also complements IperionX’s project with Materials Resources, LLC to qualify titanium alloy powders for the US Navy and test titanium flight critical metal replacement components for the US Department of Defense.

“Winning the Grand Challenge is an outstanding endorsement of IperionX’s patented titanium technologies,” stated Anastasios (Taso) Arima, IperionX CEO. “Our leading technologies can efficiently recycle titanium scrap metal and metal powders at lower cost than existing processes, and we look forward to working closely with NSIN, AFRL and other Department of Defense agencies to qualify and rapidly deploy the use of circular titanium metal across key defence platforms.”

The winner of the Grand Challenge is eligible for a contract award up to $500,000 across four phases, with IperionX successfully completing Phase 1, and will complete Phases 2 – 4 as part of routine production operations at its Titanium Pilot Facility in Utah. Phase 2 consists of the generation of a precursor Ti feedstock; 3, Ti powder production; and 4, build, rest and analyse overall cost savings

Dr. Calvin Mikler, Materials Engineer, AFRL, concluded, “The AFRL team is excited to work with IperionX on the next phase of the titanium recyclability Grand Challenge. IperionX seemed to really understand the purpose of the Grand Challenge and pitched a unique strategy to deoxygenate and rejuvenate used titanium powders and scrap materials back into powder suitable for additive manufacturing of aerospace-quality parts. We can’t wait to see the results of all the hard work yet to come!”

www.iperionx.com

In the latest issue of Metal AM magazine

Download PDF
 

Extensive AM industry news coverage, as well as the following exclusive deep-dive articles:

  • Aluminium Additive Manufacturing: How a new generation of alloys will fuel industry growth
  • Shaping a national Additive Manufacturing ecosystem: The strategic growth of metal AM in Türkiye
  • How metal Additive Manufacturing is transforming modern hydraulic systems
  • High-performance product development in the era of computational design: a case study with nTop and NASA
  • The Additive Manufacturing of record-breaking pure copper heatsinks for high-performance computing applications
  • The Additive Manufacturing of tool steels: how non-linear modelling enables precise hardness control

Join 40,000+ other AM professionals – follow us online

Don’t miss a thing – register for our newsletter

Don't miss any new issue of Metal AM magazine, and get the latest industry news. Sign up to our twice weekly newsletter.

Register now

Looking for AM machines, metal powders or part manufacturing services?

Discover suppliers of these and more in our comprehensive advertisers’ index and buyer’s guide, available in the back of Metal AM magazine.

  • AM machines
  • Process monitoring & calibration
  • Heat treatment & sintering
  • HIP systems & services
  • Pre- & post-processing technology
  • Powders, powder production and analysis
  • Part manufacturers
  • Consulting, training & market data
Find suppliers

About Metal Additive Manufacturing magazine

Metal AM magazine, published quarterly in digital and print formats, is read by a rapidly expanding international audience.

Our audience includes component manufacturers, end-users, materials and equipment suppliers, analysts, researchers and more.

In addition to providing extensive industry news coverage, Metal AM magazine is known for exclusive, in-depth articles and technical reports.

Our focus is the entire metal AM process from design to application.

Each issue is available as an easy-to-navigate digital edition and a high-quality print publication.

Discover our magazine archive…

The free to access Metal Additive Manufacturing magazine archive offers unparalleled insight into the world of metal Additive Manufacturing from a commercial and technological perspective through:

  • Reports on visits to leading metal AM part manufacturers and industry suppliers
  • Articles on technology and application trends
  • Information on materials developments
  • Reviews of key technical presentations from the international conference circuit
  • International industry news

All past issues are available to download as free PDFs or view in your browser.

Browse the archive

Share via
Copy link
Powered by Social Snap