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Inventory of 7 Surface Treatment Processes for Titanium Metals

How to make titanium metal products aesthetically pleasing depends on a variety of surface treatment techniques. This article will list the 7 major surface treatment processes for titanium metal and see what you know!
1、 Anodization
Anodizing, as a well-known mature process, will not be introduced in detail here. In addition to the commonly used aluminum alloy anode, titanium metal can also be used as an anode, and most titanium coloring processes are achieved through anodizing, which can create richer colors and patterns, with great differentiation, including ice crystal flowers, threads, and other options.
In addition to decoration, the anodizing process also plays a role in forming a dense film layer on the metal surface of the product, enhancing mechanical properties, wear and weather resistance, insulation, and improving the adhesion with the coating.
It is worth mentioning that titanium alloy is different from aluminum alloy. Although titanium has a higher cost as an anode, the hardness of the oxide film formed by titanium alloy is even worse than itself. So, generally speaking, many manufacturers choose to use anodes on the surface of pure titanium products. For example, the several products in the picture are all made of TC4 pure titanium material with an anode effect.
Most titanium products are colored using anodizing technology, but later they need to be protected with some surface techniques. For example, the iPhone 15 Pro, in addition to the original titanium silver color, all other three colors (black, white, and blue) are colored using anodizing technology. Subsequently, PVD achieves functional protection.
2、 PVD coating
PVD, also known as physical vapor deposition or vacuum coating, is a very mature process. PVD on the surface of titanium alloy is possible, mainly by adding functional coatings to provide protection and protection. However, it is worth noting that currently PVD can only barely pass the level of functionality, and its durability still needs to be improved, unless the performance of PVD's base coating material is very good.
Taking the iPhone 15 Pro as an example, among the four color schemes: black titanium, white titanium, blue titanium, and natural titanium, in addition to the original titanium silver color, the other three color schemes are paired with PVD coating technology on the anode basis to increase the surface performance of the product. However, there are still adverse effects such as fading, which reflects the lack of durability of PVD.
Of course, in addition to functionality, coloring effects can also be achieved. Overall, it can greatly enhance the design level of the product.
3、 CNC
CNC machining of titanium alloys mainly plays a role in shaping, refining, and other functions. One of the major issues in the machining process is the loss of cutting tools. Because titanium alloys are relatively hard, the processing difficulty is higher compared to other metals. During the machining process, the cutting tools are subjected to high temperatures, high cutting forces, long friction distances, large vibration deformations, tool sticking, etc., leading to severe tool wear. Traditional cutting tools are difficult to process titanium alloys and require special composite coated tools, even diamond and CBN tools, to perform better mechanical processing on them. Taking smartwatch cases as an example, on average, one tool is lost for every four cases produced, which is a huge cost.
4、 Grinding and polishing
Grinding and polishing are almost every necessary step in the processing of materials, with the aim of presenting products with more precise dimensions and delicate textures. Often, fine polishing particles or consumables are used to finely polish various positions on the surface of the product. At the same time, special effects can also be achieved through specific process schemes, such as high gloss mirror surfaces, matte frosting, and so on.
5、 Wire drawing
The surface of titanium metal can be brushed to create a matte texture. This titanium wire drawing effect has a very high appearance rate in consumer electronics industry products, balancing delicate touch and visual aesthetics, and is recognized and favored by more consumers.
6、 Laser engraving
There are mainly laser drilling and welding processes.
7、 Sandblasting
The main purpose of titanium alloy surface sandblasting technology is still to prioritize functionality. This includes improving the surface adhesion of titanium metal, improving its service life (removing surface impurities, etc.), and increasing the surface smoothness and aesthetics of the product. It can also be understood as the effect of serving other surface treatment processes.
Apple's previous new patent mentioned titanium alloy and sandblasting technology. By combining a new sandblasting process with etching and anodizing, the surface effect of titanium alloy is achieved. It can remove the coarse and extract the fine, achieving better protection and appearance. It is understood that the titanium frame of Apple's iPhone 15 Pro adopts sandblasting process.
In the surface treatment of titanium metal products, especially in the field of precision electronic products, a good method is to composite different metals and then make the appearance. The pain point lies in the relatively high cost, as the composite of different metals must maintain their unique properties and characteristics, while also meeting the requirements of large-scale production, resulting in higher prices. The iPhone 15 Pro launched by Apple adopts a brand new structural design, wrapped in a new secondary structure made of 100% recycled aluminum metal. It adopts new hot mechanical processing and other processes, and combines these two metals with high strength through solid-state diffusion under ultra-high pressure. However, the actual results are still unsatisfactory, and the surface treatment technology of titanium metal still needs further improvement.

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