In ocean engineering, titanium alloy materials are used for seawater desalination, offshore oil drilling, and ocean thermal energy conversion power plants.

(1) Seawater desalination

There are many methods for seawater desalination, and currently evaporation is the commonly used method (82%), with multi-stage rapid evaporation (MSF) accounting for 67%. Due to the high corrosiveness of seawater to pipeline materials under high temperature and high flow conditions, many pipelines, especially those in the heating section, are made of titanium material.

(2) Offshore oil drilling

On offshore platforms, titanium is used to manufacture condensers and heat exchange tubes, pumps, valves, accessories, etc. for closed cycle engines; Used for lifting pipelines, prestressed pipe joints, fixtures, and fittings in deep-sea drilling and subsea oil extraction.

(3) Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Engineering

In ocean thermal energy conversion power plants, the power system, especially the heat exchanger, is the equipment with the highest metal usage rate. Due to the low overall cycle efficiency, the heat exchanger must be very large. The design principles of power station systems should be long service life (up to 30 years) and minimal maintenance. Therefore, when selecting materials, it is necessary to comprehensively consider the material and manufacturing costs, as well as the corrosion and wear properties of the material. Titanium is undoubtedly a competitive material. In addition, titanium is widely used in geothermal energy due to its corrosion resistance and high specific strength to seawater, sulfur-containing gases, and chlorides.