Advanced materials for aerospace and biomedical applications: New glasses for hermetic titanium seals

Titanium and titanium alloys have an outstanding strength-to-weight ratio and corrosion resistance and so are materials of choice for a variety of aerospace and biomedical applications. Such applications are limited by the lack of a viable hermetic glass sealing technology. Conventional silicate sealing glasses are readily reduced by titanium to form interfacial silicides that are incompatible with a robust glass/metal seal. Borate-based glasses undergo a similar thermochemistry and are reduced to a titanium boride. The kinetics of this reactions, however, are apparently slower and so a deleterious interface does not form. Chemically durable lanthanoborate glasses were examined as candidate sealing compositions. The compositions, properties, and structures of several alkaline earth, alumina, and titania lanthanoborate glass forming systems were evaluated and this information was used as the basis for a designed experiment to optimize compositions for Ti-sealing. A number of viable compositions were identified and sealing procedures established. Finally, glass formation, properties, and structure of biocompatible Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}- and TiO{sub 2}-doped calcium phosphate systems were also evaluated