Titanium (Grade 2, Grade 5)
Commercially pure Grade 2 and Ti-6Al-4V Grade 5: properties, cutting and machining limits, and when titanium is worth its cost
Titanium is chosen when a part needs the strength of steel at 57% of the weight, or corrosion resistance that outlasts 316L stainless in seawater and chlorides. Two grades cover almost all industrial work: Grade 2, commercially pure titanium with about 345 MPa tensile strength and excellent formability, and Grade 5 (Ti-6Al-4V, 3.7165), an alloy with 895 MPa tensile strength used for machined structural and medical parts. Both are cut by fiber laser or waterjet and machined by CNC, with lower feeds and more tool wear than steel.
Suppliers in the CutLinq network process titanium sheet, plate and bar in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and to a smaller extent in Egypt, mainly for oil and gas, desalination, medical and motorsport customers. Upload a DXF or STEP file and receive a binding quote within 12 hours.
Grade 2 versus Grade 5
Grade 2 (3.7035) is the workhorse for chemical plant, heat exchangers and desalination piping: it bends cold to a 2t inner radius, welds easily under argon shielding, and resists seawater, chlorides and oxidising acids indefinitely. Its strength is similar to annealed 1.4301 (304) stainless, so it is not a substitute for steel where stiffness matters.
Grade 5 is about 2.5 times stronger, can be heat treated, and holds strength to 350 °C. It is the standard for aerospace fittings, orthopaedic implants (as the ELI variant, Grade 23) and racing components. It does not bend cold in practical thicknesses and is harder to machine, so it is used for milled and turned parts rather than sheet metal work.
| Property | Grade 2 (3.7035) | Grade 5 Ti-6Al-4V (3.7165) | 1.4404 (316L) for comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tensile strength (MPa) | 345 to 480 | 895 to 1,000 | 515 to 620 |
| Yield strength (MPa) | 275 min | 828 min | 205 min |
| Density (g/cm3) | 4.51 | 4.43 | 8.0 |
| Elongation (%) | 20 | 10 | 40 |
| Max service temperature (°C) | 300 | 350 to 400 | 500 |
| Cold bend inner radius | 2t | not practical | 1t |
Cutting titanium: laser, waterjet and plasma
Fiber laser cuts titanium sheet up to about 6 mm with argon or nitrogen assist gas; oxygen must not be used because titanium burns. Edges show a thin alpha-case layer of 20 to 50 µm that is hard and brittle, which is acceptable for brackets but must be machined off for fatigue-critical or implant parts. Waterjet has no heat-affected zone and cuts plate to 100 mm and more, so it is the preferred process for Grade 5 plate and any part that will be welded or fatigue loaded.
Plasma cutting is possible on thick Grade 2 but leaves a heavy alpha-case and is rarely worth it. Titanium dust and fine swarf are a fire risk, so suppliers keep it segregated from steel and aluminium cutting.
| Process | Thickness range (mm) | Tolerance | Heat-affected zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fiber laser (argon/N2) | 0.5 to 6 | ±0.1 to ±0.15 mm | Alpha-case 20 to 50 µm |
| Waterjet | 1 to 100+ | ±0.1 to ±0.3 mm | None |
| CNC milling | any | ±0.05 mm standard, ±0.01 achievable | None if flood cooled |
| Plasma | 6 to 50 (Grade 2 only) | ±1.0 mm | Alpha-case 0.2 to 0.5 mm |
Machining and forming
Titanium machines at roughly a quarter of the speed of 1.4301 (304): 40 to 60 m/min cutting speed with carbide tools for Grade 5, high-pressure coolant, rigid setups and climb milling to control the tendency to work-harden and gall. Thin walls below 1.5 mm and deep pockets deflect, so allow generous radii and plan for a semi-finish pass. Threads are best formed with thread mills rather than taps, since taps seize in Grade 5.
Grade 2 sheet is press-brake bent with 2t to 3t radius and springback of 15 to 25°, roughly double that of stainless; the tooling must allow for it. Grade 5 sheet requires hot forming above 600 °C and is rarely bent in the region.
- Milling Grade 5: 40 to 60 m/min carbide, 0.05 to 0.1 mm/tooth, flood coolant at 70 bar or more
- Turning Grade 2: 60 to 90 m/min, sharp positive inserts, avoid dwell
- Drilling: peck cycles, 15 to 20 m/min, cobalt or carbide drills
- Bending Grade 2: 2t to 3t inner radius, 15 to 25° springback, no cold bending of Grade 5
- Welding: TIG under full argon shielding including trailing shield and root purge; no MIG on thin gauges
Corrosion and the Gulf environment
Titanium forms a stable oxide film that repairs itself in seawater, brine, wet chlorine and hypochlorite, which is why desalination plants on the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf use Grade 2 tube and plate for condensers and intake components where 316L pits within a few years. It needs no coating, no painting and no anodising for corrosion purposes. The only common failures are galvanic corrosion of the less noble partner when titanium is bolted to aluminium or carbon steel in wet conditions, and crevice corrosion in hot brine above 80 °C, for which Grade 7 or Grade 12 is specified instead.
Cost and availability in the region
Titanium sheet, plate and bar are imported to order for most jobs; Grade 2 sheet in 1 to 3 mm and Grade 5 round bar in 20 to 100 mm are the sizes most likely to be in stock in Dubai and Dammam. Raw material costs roughly 8 to 12 times 316L per kg for Grade 2 and 12 to 18 times for Grade 5, and machining time is 3 to 4 times longer, so a finished titanium part typically costs 5 to 10 times the same part in stainless. It is worth it when weight, corrosion life or biocompatibility is the deciding factor, and rarely otherwise.
Design tips
- Use Grade 2 for anything bent or welded from sheet; reserve Grade 5 for machined parts that need strength above 800 MPa.
- Design bends in Grade 2 with inner radius of at least 2t and add 20° springback compensation to your flat pattern.
- Specify waterjet for parts thicker than 6 mm or any part with fatigue loading; ask for alpha-case removal of 0.1 mm on laser edges if required.
- Keep machined wall thickness at 1.5 mm minimum and internal corner radius at 2 mm or more to avoid tool deflection.
- Use thread-milled or helicoil-inserted threads instead of tapped threads in Grade 5.
- Isolate titanium from aluminium and carbon steel with nylon washers or sleeves in wet or coastal installations.
- Order stock sizes (Grade 2 sheet 1, 1.5, 2, 3 mm; Grade 5 bar 20 to 100 mm) to avoid 3 to 6 week import lead times.
Applications
| Industry | Example parts | Typical material |
|---|---|---|
| Desalination and water | Heat exchanger plates, intake screens, brine piping brackets | Grade 2 (3.7035) |
| Oil and gas | Subsea fittings, riser components, valve internals | Grade 5 (3.7165), Grade 2 |
| Medical | Implant plates, surgical instrument bodies, dental frames | Grade 5 ELI (Grade 23), Grade 2 |
| Motorsport and aviation | Brackets, exhaust flanges, fasteners, suspension parts | Grade 5 (3.7165) |
| Chemical processing | Reactor linings, pump housings, anode baskets | Grade 2, Grade 7 |
| Architecture | Cladding panels, sculptures in coastal exposure | Grade 1, Grade 2 sheet |
Pricing and lead time
Titanium part cost is driven by raw material (which dominates on simple cut parts, with Grade 5 costing about 40 to 60% more than Grade 2 per kg), machining time (3 to 4 times longer than stainless for the same geometry, so complexity counts heavily), and material availability (stock sizes ship in days, non-stock imports take 3 to 6 weeks). Laser or waterjet cut Grade 2 parts from stock sheet run 5 to 10 working days; machined Grade 5 components run 10 to 20 working days from stock bar, plus import time if the size is not held locally.
Frequently asked questions
Fiber laser cuts Grade 2 and Grade 5 sheet up to about 6 mm with argon assist gas. For thicker plate, welded parts or fatigue-loaded parts we recommend waterjet because it leaves no alpha-case layer on the edge.
Upload your DXF or STEP file, state Grade 2 or Grade 5, and receive a binding quote from CutLinq within 12 hours.