Electrochemical Machining Electrode, Micro Heat Exchanger

Sales of titanium materials, contract processing, sales of titanium products

Tokyo Titanium Co., Ltd.  View Company Info

Titanium wizards take superfine titanium tubes with an inside diameter of mere 2 mm and ultrathin walls a 0.3 mm thick and amazingly they TIG weld 223 of those tubes by hand to a tube plate with a diameter of 60 mm using a tungsten electrode and an inert shielding gas. These ultra-small shell and tube micro heat exchangers (MHE) are used in pure water and ultrapure water temperature control, mainly in equipment related to semiconductors and liquid crystal. TIG welded heat exchangers made of pure titanium were unprecedented when they were first developed, because of the difficulty of processing titanium. It was Tokyo Titanium that achieved this feat using its proprietary advanced technical capabilities.

Do you know any titanium wizards?

Micro Heat Exchanger and Electrochemical Machining Electrode

Titanium wizards take superfine titanium tubes with an inside diameter of mere 2 mm and ultrathin walls a 0.3 mm thick and amazingly they TIG weld 223 of those tubes by hand to a tube plate with a diameter of 60 mm using a tungsten electrode and an inert shielding gas. These ultra-small shell and tube micro heat exchangers (MHE) are used in pure water and ultrapure water temperature control, mainly in equipment related to semiconductors and liquid crystal. TIG welded heat exchangers made of pure titanium were unprecedented when they were first developed, because of the difficulty of processing titanium. It was Tokyo Titanium that achieved this feat using its proprietary advanced technical capabilities.

In the titanium industry, where division of labor is the norm, Tokyo Titanium is one of only two or three extremely exceptional companies in the world specializing in titanium that provides integrated materials, processing and development services.

 

Pure titanium heat exchangers needed by the semiconductor and liquid crystal industries

tokyo titanium image03Pure water or ultrapure water-based temperature control is crucial in the manufacturing of semiconductors and liquid crystal. However, in 2004, the nickel-brazed plate heat exchangers and Teflon heat exchangers that were mainly used at that time had problems such as the elution of nickel brazing into pure water and larger sizes.

Tokyo Titanium started working on the development of heat exchangers when it received a proposal related to semiconductors from a business partner. Titanium is highly resistant to corrosion and is characterized by the fact that it does not readily ionize. Moreover, because titanium has overwhelming thermal conductivity compared to Teflon, it is possible to make smaller sizes.. Titanium heat exchangers are a product that is needed in the semiconductor and liquid crystal industries, which use pure water and ultrapure water.

However, when development began, making smaller tubes to put into the pipe caused the difficulty of processing titanium, which is a feature of this material, to become a barrier that stood in the way. The company thought about using existing large-diameter tubes, but the result in that case would be a drop in heat conductivity and higher costs. Dead set on reducing the size of parts, Tokyo Titanium proceeded with technology development. In the end, it succeeded in manufacturing tubes with an inside diameter of 2 mm and a wall thickness of 0.3 mm. However, there was still a major challenge that had to be surmounted to commercialize a product. That was the need to TIG weld a large number of these superfine tubes with ultrathin walls onto tube plates.

 

Precise skill of craftsmen who make welds a mere 0.1 mm across

tokyo titanium image04TIG welding enables quality welding, but it is a method that requires an extremely high level of skill. TIG welding titanium is especially difficult because the material oxidizes easily at high temperatures.

The area that can be welded between a tube and the tube plate is a mere 0.1 mm across. And, 223 tubes have to be TIG welded into an area that has a diameter of 60 mm. It was the outstanding welding technique of Tokyo Titanium’s craftsmen that made such exceedingly delicate welding possible.

Later, Tokyo Titanium tackled the development of a special automatic welding machine, and here too the skills of its craftsmen were essential. It took the data accumulated by craftsmen in the course of performing the welds hundreds of times. They also made ingenious adjustments to the jig. After repeated trial and error, the special automatic welding machine was finally completed.

The ultra-small shell and tube micro heat exchanger (MHE) made from pure titanium using TIG welding is a product developed in-house by Tokyo Titanium. However, as a matter of fact, Ryota Ozawa, Manager of Tokyo Titanium’s Sales Department, says that it is possible to manufacture the same heat exchangers without TIG welding. Well then, why did the company choose TIG welding? “MHEs could be manufactured using electron beam welding or laser welding. But, different from TIG welding, the setup takes a long time and the costs are higher.

What is more, with TIG welding, a product can be welded into various shapes, which increases design freedom. The length and number of tubes can be changed easily, and it is possible to respond flexibly to needs such as higher performance and greater flow rates. TIG welding was necessary to make these possible.”

Looked at a different way, the skill of Tokyo Titanium’s craftsmen in precision welding is equal to that of electron beam welding. Ozawa says, “Welding titanium is extremely difficult. Of course we have proprietary knowhow that the company has cultivated over many years, but the biggest factor still comes down to the craftsmen’s skills.”

Proud craftsmanship that enables tolerances of ±0.01 mm

In addition to the heat exchanger field mentioned above, Tokyo Titanium also conducts product development in the medical, marine and power generation fields. Among these, a product that the company would like to put effort into marketing outside Japan in the future is the electrochemical machining titanium electrode (ECM titanium electrode) in the power generation field.

ECM titanium electrodes are used when drilling cooling holes in the turbine wings of gas turbines used in power generation. Tokyo Titanium is developing this product in collaboration with small and medium-sized enterprises that have technical competence.

The points stressed in quality are the degree of concentricity in the super slender long titanium pipes, inner and outer surface quality, and straightness. Tokyo Titanium has total confidence in its ability to produce high quality on these points. It guarantees exceedingly high precision with a tolerance of ±0.01 mm in the pipe hole using the pipe drawing processing. As for straightness control, the company conducts tests on all products, checking each and every pipe by eye, in every process. Even tiny bends are not overlooked and are carefully corrected by hand. Moreover, in addition to standard sizes, the company is prepared to produce custom pipe sizes ranging down to an outer diameter of 0.2 mm with a wall thickness of 0.015 mm and a length of 1,200 mm, in order to meet customers’ detailed requests.

Tokyo Titanium receives numerous inquiries from outside Japan regarding this product, from which it can feel that overseas power generation-related companies have a high level of interest in its technology and quality.

 

Tokyo Titanium: one of only two or three extremely exceptional companies in the world specializing in titanium that provides integrated materials, processing and development services

Tokyo Titanium has a plentiful inventory in terms of both variety and quantity, conducts processing in its adjoining plant, and provides short lead times with no time loss, even for small production lots.

Not only does the company provide estimates for drawings as provided, it goes a step further and offers the kinds of suggestions that only a titanium specialist can. On one of its past jobs, Tokyo Titanium increased strength by 20% while cutting the cost by 26% by switching the processing method from cutting to the swaging of forging process. Tokyo Titanium can make such proposals because it has expert understanding of titanium and processing knowhow cultivated over many years.

 

World-class superiority and strength

Since division of labor is the norm with titanium, there is a perception in industry that time loss in unavoidable. But, as Tokyo Titanium produces no losses at all, it can hold its own in lead times, even when delivering outside Japan. Ozawa is confident that, depending on the product, “we can deliver in a shorter time to USA, including processing, than ordering from a company in USA.”

Ozawa sees the present situation that titanium is in as, in a sense, a vicious cycle. Because the price of titanium is nearly six times that of stainless steel, product development does not accelerate, which results in prices remaining high. However, because it is in such an unforgiving industry, Tokyo Titanium really stands out. The company’s integrated system encompassing materials, processing and development as well as the technical abilities of its outstanding craftsmen, who can respond flexibly to minute needs, will certainly demonstrate their superiority and strength anywhere in the world.

Tokyo Titanium Co., Ltd.

Business Description: Sales of titanium materials, Contract processing and sales of titanium products
Headquarters Address: 2-3-10 Kokaba, Iwatsuki-ku, Saitama-City, Saitama 339-0072Representative: Hideyuki Ozawa
Founded: 1982
Number of Employees: 30
Website: www.tokyo-titanium.com