The seawater pipeline system is complicated and has many sizes. The selected materials are required to be resistant to seawater corrosion, have high strength, and have good fatigue properties. Titanium can be satisfied, Gr2 Titanium Tube has significant advantages over traditional materials (carbon steel, stainless steel, copper alloy).
(1) Increase service life, which is the same as that of the ship. The service life of pipeline systems made of conventional materials and titanium is studied in Russia. The results show that the titanium material has the same life as the ship, only needs to be put into service once, and only needs simple maintenance during service. Traditional materials have a service life of about 2~10a. They must be repaired or even replaced regularly during the service period. Especially under a high-speed driving environment, various joints will cause local corrosion. Application data of U.S. Navy ships show that the service life of Gr2 titanium tube is 40A and that of copper-nickel alloy piping is only 6-8a. The validation assessment test of seawater piping system manufactured by using "titanium alloy" instead of "copper alloy" has been carried out in China.
(2) Reduce cost.
Titanium alloy parts can be used for the whole life even though the cost is high at one time. They only need simple maintenance and save a lot of maintenance costs. Copper-nickel alloy pipes used in heat exchangers of U.S. Navy ships need to be replaced about 97km per year. Gr2 titanium tubes are used in 2 main seawater piping systems of LPD17 amphibious dock shipping vessels, with a total length of over 3350m and cost savings of over 17 million US dollars over the lifetime.
In conclusion, the use of titanium in piping systems can not only reduce weight but also achieve the same life as the body, at the same time, reduce costs. In recent years, it has been applied in batches on 022 ships and other types of marine equipment in China.
