Materials Characterization 51 (2003) 131 139

Characterization of titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V for chemical,

marine and industrial applications
I. Gurrappa *
Defence Metallurgical Research Laboratory, P.O. Kanchanbagh, Hyderabad 500-058, India
Received 3 February 2003; accepted 3 October 2003

Abstract
The current paper explains the corrosion characteristics of titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V in three different environments, which
simulates chemical, marine and industrial environments at various temperatures. The results revealed that the titanium alloy
could form a protective oxide scale under different environmental conditions studied at both low and higher temperatures. The
corrosion rate evaluated in different environments and at different temperatures was correlated. The pitting corrosion studies in
different environments revealed that the alloy is resistant to pitting and crevice corrosion in marine and chemical environments
at both temperatures but susceptible in industrial environments. The corrosion morphologies observed at different temperatures
and in various environments were correlated as well as the degradation mechanism that is leading the titanium alloy to fail under
various environmental conditions. Finally, based on the results obtained with different techniques, the alloy was recommended
to fabricate the components intended to use in a variety of environmental conditions.
D 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Titanium alloy; Industrial applications; Corrosion; Degradation mechanism

1. Introduction
In view of excellent strength and lightweight
properties, titanium alloys are attractive candidate
materials to fabricate the components for aerospace
applications. Apart from the aerospace industry,
titanium alloys have led to widespread nonaerospace applications due to good corrosion resistance
to many highly corrosive environments. Titanium
alloys that consist of only alpha phase are commonly used in industrial applications where corro-

* Tel.: +91-40-245-86515x6515; fax: +91-40-243-40683.

E-mail address: igpl@rediffmail.com (I. Gurrappa).
1044-5803/$ - see front matter D 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.matchar.2003.10.006

sion resistance is a primary concern. However, in

titanium alloys developed recently for aerospace
applications, significantly improved strength is
achieved by solid-solution alloying and stabilization
of two-phase structures. Although titanium-based
alloys exhibit good corrosion resistance due to the
formation of titania on its surface, the nature,
composition and thickness of the protective oxide
scales depend on environmental conditions. Literature on the Ti-6Al-4V alloy, with and without
surface treatments, showed corrosion problems with
the alloy [1 8]. Therefore, it is essential to understand the corrosion characteristics of titanium alloy
Ti-6Al-4V in detail under different environmental
conditions.

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I. Gurrappa / Materials Characterization 51 (2003) 131139

The corrosion characteristics of titanium alloy

IMI-834 was studied recently in a variety of environmental conditions and recommended suitable
applications [9]. A systematic study was also carried
out by Gurrappa [10,11] on IMI-834 alloy for its
oxidation and hot corrosion resistance and relevant
degradation mechanisms were proposed. Further,
high-performance coatings were successfully developed by a combination of surface engineering techniques [12 16]. A feasibility study to use this alloy
in biomedical applications was also investigated
[17].
Titanium tubing is being used successfully for
seawater-cooled heat exchangers where its resistance
to pitting and erosion-corrosion make it a useful
material [18,19]. Titanium does not undergo crevice
corrosion in seawater at room temperature, but instances were recorded in hot seawater such as under an
asbestos gasket at 95 120 jC (200 250 jF) [20].
Nazarov studied the influence of major factors, such
as the temperature, crevice inner conditions, nature of
crevice, composition and potential of alloys. Practical
ways of titanium alloys for effective protection against
crevice corrosion were reported [21,22]. Crevice corrosion was reported between a titanium tube sheet and
titanium tubes, whereas the combination of a titanium
tube and a copper alloy tube sheet did not cause
crevice corrosion in brine at higher temperatures
(above 100 jC) [22]. Mankowski et al. showed that
titanium alloys were susceptible to stress corrosion
cracking in saltwater solutions [23]. The resistance to
pitting was accounted for by a very noble critical
pitting potential of about 12 14 V in dilute chloride
solutions at room temperature. Beck reported that
initiation of pitting in titanium is more pronounced
in Br and I than in Cl solutions. The critical
pitting potentials in 1 M Br and 1 M I solutions
at room temperature are 0.9 and 1.8 V [24]. At high
Cl concentrations and elevated temperatures, the
critical potential becomes much more active; hence,
pitting corrosion is observed in hot concentrated
CaCl2 and similar solutions [25].
For obtaining higher efficiencies, the components
of industrial systems have to be fabricated from the
materials, which satisfy both mechanical and corrosion resistance. In fact, corrosion decides the life of
components in a variety of industries. Therefore,
materials selection based on their corrosion resis-

tance (if selected) enhances the efficiency and

reduces down time, which in turn improves production significantly. As mentioned earlier, titanium and
its alloys have been in use due to their superior
corrosion resistance not only in a variety of industries [26,27] but also in biomedical applications [28
30]. In the present investigation, an attempt has been
made to understand the corrosion behavior of titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V for fabrication of components in
various industries by carrying out a systematic corrosion study under different environmental conditions. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was
used to understand the nature of corrosion through
which the titanium alloy degrades in various environmental conditions.

2. Experimental
Test specimens 4 mm high and 14 mm in diameter
were machined from Ti-6Al-4V alloy sheet. Potentiodynamic polarization, cyclic polarization and potential
versus time techniques were used to study the corrosion characteristics. The corrosion resistance of Ti6Al-4V was tested in three different environmental
conditions (chemical/acidic, marine and industrial) at
various temperatures (25 and 50 jC). The tests were
carried out by using model 273A EG&G PARC
potentiostat along with model 352 corrosion analysis
software. A standard three-electrode cell consisting of
titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V as the working electrode, a
saturated calomel reference electrode (SCE) and a
graphite counter electrode were used to perform
polarization experiments. A magnetic stirrer was used
to stir the solutions.
Potentiodynamic polarization technique was used
to determine the active/passive characteristics of a
given titanium alloy-environmental system and to
determine corrosion rates in different environmental
conditions. The isolated corrosion potential (Ecorr)
versus time curves were used to assess the protective
nature of the material. A cyclic polarization technique
was used to evaluate the pitting and crevice corrosion
resistance of Ti-6Al-4V alloy in different environments (chemical, marine and industrial) and at various
temperatures (25 and 50 jC). Finally, SEM was used
to understand the degradation of the alloy under
various environmental conditions.

I. Gurrappa / Materials Characterization 51 (2003) 131139

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Isolated Ecorr versus time curves
The variation of isolated Ecorr as a function of time
for Ti-6Al-4V in various environments (acidic, marine
and industrial) and at different temperatures (25 and
50 jC) is shown in Fig. 1. The potential of Ti-6Al-4V
in all the environments (acidic, marine and industrial)
moved toward the positive side at 25 jC due to the
formation of a protective oxide scale on the surface of
Ti-6Al-4V. In the same environments at 50 jC, the
Ecorr of Ti-6Al-4V was either moved to the positive
side or maintained constant. This type of behavior
clearly indicates that the alloy could form a protective,
stable oxide scale on its surface even at higher
temperatures. Generally, a rise in potential in the
positive direction indicates the formation of a passive
film, and a steady potential indicates that the film
remains intact and protective. A drop of potential in
the negative direction indicates breaks in the film,
dissolution of the film or no film formation. Therefore, for any alloy/coating for obtaining good corrosion resistance, the potentials should either shift to the
more positive side or maintain a steady value as a
function of time under the chosen environmental
conditions. The present results show that the alloy
could form a protective oxide scale for its corrosion

133

resistance at both low and higher temperatures in all

three tested environments. It suggests that this alloy
can be used even at higher temperatures in all the
environments.
3.2. Potentiodynamic polarization
Ecorr, corrosion current density (Icorr), anodic/cathodic Tafel slopes and corrosion rates measured for
Ti-6Al-4V in different environmental conditions (acidic, marine and industrial) at various temperatures (25
and 50 jC) with the help of potentiodynamic polarization technique are presented in Table 1.
Data (Table 1) reveal that the corrosion rate of Ti6Al-4V alloy depends not only on the environment
but also on the temperature. The Icorr of Ti-6Al-4V at
50 jC is more than the Icorr at 25 jC in all environments. The Icorr of this alloy at 50jC is about two
times more than that of the Icorr at 25 jC. Consequently, the corrosion rate at 50 jC is more than the
corrosion rate at 25 jC in all environments. The
corrosion rate increased by about 1.5 times in acidic
environments and by two times in marine and industrial environments when the temperature is increased
from 25 to 50 jC. It is interesting to mention that the
corrosion rate of the titanium alloy is nearly the same
in both marine and industrial environments at 25 jC.
In an acidic environment at the same temperature, the

Fig. 1. Variation of isolated Ecorr as a function of time for Ti-6Al-4V in various environments and at different temperatures.

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I. Gurrappa / Materials Characterization 51 (2003) 131139

Table 1
Ecorr, Icorr, bc, ba and corrosion rate for Ti-6Al-4V in different environments at various temperatures
Environment
Chemical
Marine
Industrial

Temperature
(jC)
25
50
25
50
25
50

Ecorr
(mV)
133.8
28.87
436.9
410.2
417.7
426.4

Icorr
(AA/cm2)

bc
(10

324.8
499.4
58.46
135.7
78.90
165.10

0.2384
0.2561
0.3955
0.5391
0.3489
0.8310

corrosion rate is almost six times, indicating the

aggressiveness of the hydrogen-containing environment to the present titanium alloy. Even at higher
temperatures, the corrosion rate is more in acidic
environments (although the difference is less) when
compared with marine and industrial environments.
3.3. Cyclic polarization
The cyclic polarization curves of Ti-6Al-4V in
acidic, marine and industrial environments at various
temperatures are shown in Figs. 2 4, respectively. In
acidic environments, the reverse scan came above the
forward scan, indicating that the alloy is resistant to
pitting and crevice corrosion at 25 jC. The reverse
scan of Ti-6Al-4V at 50 jC also came above the
forward scan, indicating that it is resistant to both
pitting and crevice corrosion in the same environment

V/decade)

ba
(10

0.0088
0.2926
0.6955
0.7403
0.5757
0.1114

V/decade)

Corrosion
rate (mils/year)
227.0
348.9
41.41
96.10
55.13
116.9

(Fig. 2). As the corrosion rate is observed for Ti-6Al4V at 25 and 50 jC in chemical environments, the
mode of degradation is due to uniform corrosion.
In marine environments at 25 jC, the reverse scan
almost followed the forward scan, implying that it is
resistant to both pitting and crevice corrosion. At 50
jC in the same environment, the reverse scan came
well above the forward scan. It could not intersect the
forward scan (Fig. 3). It is clearly indicating that Ti6Al-4V is not susceptible to either pitting or crevice
corrosion even at a temperature of 50 jC. However, in
industrial environments, the reverse scan came below
the forward scan at 25 jC and formed a small loop,
indicating that it is vulnerable to pitting as well as
crevice corrosion. Even at 50 jC, the reverse scan
came below the forward scan (Fig. 4), indicating that
it is susceptible to pitting and crevice corrosion in the
same environment.

Fig. 2. Cyclic polarization curves of titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V at different temperatures in chemical environments.

I. Gurrappa / Materials Characterization 51 (2003) 131139

135

Fig. 3. Cyclic polarization curves of titanium alloy Ti-GAL-4V at different temperatures in marine environments.

From the cyclic polarization data, the pitting and

crevice corrosion characteristics vary from one environment to another. The present alloy is not susceptible to either pitting or crevice corrosion in chemical
and marine environments at both low and higher
temperatures. However, the alloy is found to be
susceptible to both pitting and crevice corrosion in
industrial environments. In the chemical environment,
no pitting and crevice corrosion was observed even at

high temperatures, although the corrosion rate was

greater. The pitting and crevice corrosion resistance of
any coating/material, in general, can be evaluated
based on the formation of a loop and the ranking of
coating/material can be given based on the area of
loops that form in the cyclic polarization curves. The
higher the loop area, the poorer is the resistance to
pitting and crevice corrosion and vice versa [31]. In
the present investigation, the loop area is more in the

Fig. 4. Cyclic polarization curves of Ti-GAL-4V at different temperatures in industrial environments.

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I. Gurrappa / Materials Characterization 51 (2003) 131139

industrial environment at 50 jC. Therefore, pitting

and crevice corrosion are greater in industrial environments at higher temperatures compared with lower
temperatures. It is important to mention that as the
corrosion rate is observed for Ti-6Al-4V alloy in
chemical and marine environments at both temperatures, the mode of degradation is due to uniform
corrosion. Even at higher temperatures in these environments, the titanium alloy undergoes uniform corrosion as the alloy is not susceptible to either pitting or
crevice corrosion (Figs. 2 and 3). It was reported that
the alloy Ti-6Al-4V is susceptible to pitting corrosion
after ion implantation of nitrogen [1]. It was also
reported that at elevated temperatures and higher
concentrations of CaCl2, the alloy undergoes pitting
corrosion [25]. The present results showed that the
alloy is resistant to pitting corrosion up to 50 jC in
low-chloride-containing environment, but sulfur-containing environments make the titanium alloy undergo
pitting corrosion.
3.4. SEM
To confirm the degradation mechanism of the
titanium alloy under various environmental conditions, the corroded specimens (in chemical, marine
and industrial environments) were observed under the

SEM. The surface morphologies of Ti-6Al-4V alloy

after corrosion studies at 25 and 50 jC in acidic
environments showed that the alloy was corroded
uniformly, indicating that uniform corrosion is the
reason for degradation of the alloy under acidic
environmental conditions. The surface morphologies
of Ti-6Al-4V after corrosion studies at different temperatures (25 and 50jC) in marine and industrial
environments are shown in Figs. 5 and 6. As can be
seen, the alloy was corroded uniformly. It is attributed
to uniform corrosion in marine environments (Fig. 5).
It is the reason for the degradation of Ti-6Al-4V under
marine environments at 50 jC. It is also seen from
Fig. 6 that small pits over the entire alloy surface are
observed for the Ti-6Al-4V, which corroded at 25 and
50 jC, indicating that pitting corrosion is the mode of
degradation under industrial environments at both low
and higher temperatures. SEM results are in good
agreement with the cyclic polarization data. Hence,
SEM results confirm that the degradation of titanium
alloy Ti-6Al-4V takes place due to uniform corrosion
in chemical and marine environmental conditions, and
pitting and crevice corrosion are the modes of degradation in industrial environments. These results are
supported by the reported data for the titanium alloys
[20]. It is further supported by the suggested measures
to combat crevice corrosion of titanium alloys [21,22].

Fig. 5. Surface morphology of Ti-6Al-4V after corrosion studies in marine environment at 50 jC.

I. Gurrappa / Materials Characterization 51 (2003) 131139

137

Fig. 6. Surface morphologies of Ti-6Al-4V after corrosion studies in industrial environments at 25 and 50 jC.

The present results suggest that titanium alloy Ti6Al-4V can be used for the fabrication of components
intended for use in marine and acidic environmental
conditions with normal minimum surface treatments
at lower temperatures. The results also indicate that
the alloy should not be used in the industrial environments without the application of appropriate surface

coatings or treatments as the mechanism of degradation is due to pitting, which is highly critical for the
components used in these industries. The investigations further suggest that effective protective measures
are very essential to use this alloy in the industries as
the life improves significantly with suitable protective
measures.

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I. Gurrappa / Materials Characterization 51 (2003) 131139

4. Conclusions and future research

Based on the investigations in chemical/acidic,
marine and industrial environments, titanium alloy
Ti-6Al-4V is able to form protective oxide scales over
its surface in all three different environments at both
low and higher temperatures. The data clearly revealed that the oxide scale that forms on the surface
of Ti-6Al-4V is stable in the three environments
studied. The investigation also revealed that the corrosion rate increases by about two times when the
temperature increases from 25 to 50 jC.
In marine and chemical environments, the alloy is
not susceptible to either pitting or crevice corrosion
even at higher temperatures (50 jC). The alloy
degrades due to uniform corrosion. However, in
industrial environments, pitting and crevice corrosion
are observed at both low and higher temperatures and
the mode of degradation is due to pitting and crevice
corrosion. Therefore, the degradation mechanism
varies from one environment to another. Based on
these results, titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V is recommended to use for fabrication of components intended to
use in marine environments with minimum suitable
surface treatments. This alloy is also recommended to
use for the fabrication of components intended to use
in chemical environments with appropriate protective
measures. Effective protective measures are extremely
essential for the titanium alloy components intended
to be used in industrial environments as pitting
corrosion occurs. Further studies are essential in all
the environments with different surface treatments
with a view to develop/identify a novel surface
treatment. The literature showed that suitable surface
treatments enhance the life of titanium alloy components significantly, which in turn helps in enhancing
the efficiency of the industries. In fact, it is a very
important issue for the industries to make profits [32
35]. The other way is to produce corrosion-resistant
titanium alloys. This method involves first applying a
degree of cold working of about 10% of the total
working reduction while causing an oil to exist on the
surface of the titanium alloy during cold working and
then subjecting the titanium alloy to heat treatment at
a temperature of 300 jC, thereby forming a layer with
excellent corrosion resistance containing at least one
of Ti2N, TiC and Ti(CN) on the surface of titanium
alloy [4]. The studies are also needed at high temper-

atures (i.e., above 50 jC) in all the environments to

understand their corrosion behavior.

Acknowledgements
Defence Research and Development Organisation
is gratefully acknowledged for financial assistance.

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