First titanium project begins test production in Odisha

The plant one and only in the country and the first titanium project of India being established by Saraf Group in Ganjam district of Odisha started its test production, , would be ready for inauguration in the next few months.

About Titanium

Titanium is a chemical element with symbol Ti and atomic number  It is a lustrous transition metal with a silver color, low density and high strength. It is highly resistant to corrosion in sea water, aqua regia, and chlorine.

• Titanium was discovered in Cornwall, Great Britain, by William Gregor in 1791 and named by Martin Heinrich Klaproth for the Titans of Greek mythology.
• The element occurs within a number of mineral deposits, principally rutile and ilmenite, which are widely distributed in the Earth’s crust and lithosphere, and it is found in almost all living things, rocks, water bodies, and soils. The metal is extracted from its principal mineral ores by the Kroll and Hunter process
• The most common compound,titanium dioxide, is a popular photocatalyst and is used in the manufacture of white  Other compounds include titanium tetrachloride (TiCl₄), a component of smoke screens and catalysts; and titanium trichloride (TiCl₃), which is used as a catalyst in the production of polypropylene.
• Titanium can bealloyed with iron, aluminium, vanadium, and molybdenum, among other elements, to produce strong, lightweight alloys for aerospace military, industrial process (chemicals and petro-chemicals, desalination plants, pulp, and paper), automotive, agri-food, medical prostheses, orthopedic implants, dental and endodontic instruments and files, dental implants, sporting goods, jewelry, mobile phones, and other applications.
• The two most useful properties of the metal are corrosion resistance and the highest strength-to-density ratio of any metallic element. In its unalloyed condition, titanium is as strong as some steels, but less dense.
• There are two allotropic forms and five naturally occurring isotopes of this element, ⁴⁶Ti through ⁵⁰Ti, with ⁴⁸Ti being the most abundant (73.8%).

Although they have the same number of valence electrons and are in the same group in the periodic table, titanium and zirconium differ in many chemical and physical properties.

About the Project,

In the first phase, Saraf group has invested 350 crore rupees in this titanium project, which will produce titanium slag. Its raw material, ilmenite would be procured from Odisha Sands Complex (OSCOM), a unit of Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL) in Ganjam district of Odisha as well as a private company which has its unit in Srikakulam of adjoining Andhra Pradesh.

• The titanium plant will be ready for inauguration in the next few months and is expected to generate 36,000 tonne of titanium slag and 20,000 tonne of pig iron per year.
• The company plans to expand its titanium project and produce titanium metal and to execute the project, the company acquired 200 acre of private land and 34 acre of government land.
• This project had been proposed in 2005. In 2007, the then Russian Premier Viktor Ubkov had shown interest in this project during visit of then Indian PM Manmohan Singh to Russia.
• Saraf Group had signed MoUs with two Russian State-run companies for the proposed titanium project. But later the Russian companies had backed out. But Saraf Group had entered into a MoU with Odisha government in 2008, to take up the project on its own.
• This export based industry is expected to export around 75 per cent of its produce to countries like China, Japan.
• Its produce would also be used within country in ship making, aeronautics, automobile and defence products manufacturing industries.
• This titanium project of Saraf Group is coming up near Gopalpur port and the proposed SEZ of Tata Steel in the region. This titanium industry would use ilmenite produced by Odisha Sands Complex (OSCOM) of Indian Rare Earths Ltd (IREL) located in the same area to produce titanium.