Titanium, a high-performance metal material, has been extensively and deeply applied in the critical copper electrolysis industry due to its exceptional corrosion resistance, high strength, and lightweight properties. Its applications not only encompass various core equipment in the copper smelting process but also play an irreplaceable and crucial role in improving production efficiency, optimizing product quality, and reducing overall costs.
1. Titanium Applications in Core Equipment Manufacturing
In the complex system of copper electrolysis, titanium has become the material of choice for the manufacture of a variety of key equipment. As the core reaction vessel of copper electrolysis, the electrolytic cell is subjected to intense corrosion from the electrolyte and the various physical and chemical reactions generated during the electrolysis process. Titanium, with its excellent corrosion resistance, ensures the structural integrity and stability of the electrolytic cell during long-term operation, effectively preventing leakage and performance degradation caused by corrosion, thereby ensuring the continuity and efficiency of the electrolysis process.
The electrolyte supply tank is also manufactured from titanium to ensure the purity and stability of the electrolyte during storage and transportation. Titanium's corrosion resistance prevents the electrolyte from reacting with the supply tank material, preventing impurities from entering the electrolyte, thereby ensuring the quality of the electrolytic copper.
Pumps, scrubbers, heat exchangers, and filters also play a crucial role in the copper electrolysis process. Pumps circulate the electrolyte, and titanium-made pumps can withstand the corrosion of the electrolyte, ensuring long-term stable operation. Scrubbers purify the electrolytic gas, and titanium ensures their corrosion resistance and longevity. Heat exchangers regulate the temperature of the electrolysis process, and titanium's high thermal conductivity and corrosion resistance make them an ideal material. Filters filter impurities from the electrolyte, and titanium-made filters effectively trap impurities while also being impervious to corrosion.
Titanium is also widely used in pipes, valves, and various other components. During the transportation and distribution of the electrolyte, titanium pipes and valves ensure the purity and flow stability of the electrolyte, preventing leaks and blockages caused by corrosion. Using titanium for various components, such as connectors and seals, enhances equipment reliability and service life. II. Innovative Applications of Titanium in Cathode Seed Plate Manufacturing
The cathode seed plate is a key component in the copper electrolysis process, and its performance directly impacts the quality and production efficiency of the electrolytic copper. As an innovative cathode seed plate, the titanium seed plate is ingeniously constructed from a titanium plate and a titanium-copper composite lug. The titanium surface and the titanium plate are tightly connected through precision welding, forming a structurally stable and high-performance unit.
Compared to traditional copper seed plates, titanium seed plates offer several significant advantages. First, in terms of corrosion resistance, titanium seed plates can withstand long-term immersion in electrolyte and the impact of various operations, remaining intact, flat and smooth. Actual application data shows that over nine years, titanium seed plates have survived over 3,000 working days of electrolyte immersion and over 20,000 collisions from various operations, remaining intact. Preliminary estimates suggest a service life of 20 years, more than three times that of copper seed plates.
Second, the oxide film on the surface of the titanium seed plate forms a natural, durable, and wear-resistant separator. This property eliminates the need for additional separator application, eliminating the need for pre-treatment of the seed plate and significantly simplifying the process. Furthermore, titanium seed plates are half the weight of copper seed plates, significantly reducing worker workload and increasing cathode stripping productivity by 25%-30%.
III. Key Applications of Titanium in Special Equipment Manufacturing
Titanium also plays a key role in sulfate processing. Special equipment such as vacuum evaporation units, crystallizers, and coil heaters play a central role in sulfate processing, and all of this equipment is manufactured from titanium.
The vacuum evaporation unit is used to evaporate water from the sulfate solution to produce a concentrated sulfate product. Titanium's corrosion resistance and high-temperature stability enable long-term stable operation in vacuum and high-temperature environments, ensuring the efficiency of the evaporation process and product quality.
The crystallizer cools and crystallizes the concentrated sulfate solution to produce a solid sulfate product. Titanium's thermal conductivity and corrosion resistance make it an ideal material for the crystallizer, ensuring uniformity and stability during the crystallization process, improving product purity and crystallinity.
The coil heater provides the necessary heat for the evaporation and crystallization processes. Titanium's high thermal conductivity and corrosion resistance enable efficient heat transfer while avoiding reactions with sulfate solutions, ensuring a stable and safe heating process.
IV. Comprehensive Benefits of Titanium Applications
The widespread use of titanium in copper electrolysis not only improves equipment performance and service life, but also offers significant comprehensive benefits in terms of optimizing product quality, increasing production efficiency, and reducing overall costs.
In terms of product quality, equipment and components manufactured using titanium ensure that electrolytic copper has a dense crystal structure, high ductility, a smooth surface, and excellent quality. This meets the stringent requirements of the high-end electrolytic copper market and enhances product competitiveness.
In terms of production efficiency, the use of titanium seed plates simplifies the operating process and increases the yield and yield of starter sheets. The yield of starter sheets has increased from 75%-80% to over 98%, significantly reducing scrap and rework rates. Furthermore, since titanium seed plates do not require the application of separators, contamination of the copper electrolyte is avoided, further improving production efficiency and product quality.
The company boasts leading domestic titanium processing production lines, including:
German-imported precision titanium tube production line (annual production capacity: 30,000 tons);
Japanese-technology titanium foil rolling line (thinnest to 6μm);
Fully automated titanium rod continuous extrusion line;
Intelligent titanium plate and strip finishing mill;
The MES system enables digital control and management of the entire production process, achieving product dimensional accuracy of ±0.01μm.
