India's largest titanium and superalloy materials plant | 16 May 2025

Why in News? 

Union Defence Minister and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister inaugurated India 's largest Titanium and Superalloy Materials Plant in Lucknow . 

Key Points 

  •  About the Plant: 
    • This titanium plant is operated by Aeroalloy Technologies Limited, a subsidiary of PTC Industries Limited. 
    • The plant is spread over an area of 50 acres and has an annual production capacity of 6,000 tonnes , making it the world's largest single-site titanium remelting facility . 
    • The state-of-the-art technologies being used at this plant include: 
      • Vacuum arc remelting (VAR) 
      • Electron Beam (EB) 
      • Plasma Arc Melting (PAM) 
      • Vacuum Induction Melting (VIM) 
    • These technologies will make domestic production of aerospace-grade materials possible. 
  • Along with the titanium plant, the foundation stone of seven additional advanced facilities was also laid. Prominent among them are: 
    • Aerospace Precision Casting Plants : Which make single crystal castings, which are important for jet engines. 
    • Aerospace Forge Shop and Mill Products Plant: The need for manufacturing critical materials such as billets, bars and plates will be eliminated. 
    • Aerospace Precision Machining Shop: which provides capability for ready-to-assemble ultra-precision CNC machined components. 
  • The project is being developed under the Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor, which aims to promote self-reliance in defence production . 

Titanium  

  • Its symbol Ti and atomic number 22, known for its high strength-to-weight ratio, excellent corrosion resistance, and ability to withstand high temperatures.  
  • It is a light and strong metal. It is as strong as steel, but much lighter than that.  
  • Titanium is the preferred material for making underwater objects because it can withstand heavy water pressure even at great depths and does not rust. 
  • Titanium metal is used in making alloys with aluminium, molybdenum, manganese, iron and other metals. These alloys of titanium are used in  the aviation industry . 
  • Titanium is a component of joint replacement parts, including the hip ball and socket.  
  • Titanium is also used in  dental implants . 

Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor 

  • It is an ambitious project aimed at reducing the foreign dependency of the Indian aerospace and defence sector. 
  • It will have 6 nodes – Aligarh, Agra, Kanpur, Chitrakoot, Jhansi and Lucknow. 
  • Uttar Pradesh Expressway Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) was made the nodal agency to execute the project in collaboration with various state agencies . 
  • The aim of this corridor is to establish the state as one of the largest and advanced defence manufacturing hubs and put it on the world map. 
    • Defence Corridor refers to a route or path used by public sector, private sector and micro, small and medium enterprises for domestic production of defence equipment as well as to enhance equipment/operational capabilities of the defence forces.