Material GuideJune 2026 · 8 min read

Titanium Grade 2 vs Grade 5 — Which One Should You Choose?

Q: What is the difference between Titanium Grade 2 and Grade 5?

Grade 2 is commercially pure titanium (99.2% Ti) — maximum corrosion resistance, excellent formability, moderate strength (345 MPa yield). Grade 5 (Ti-6Al-4V) is an alpha-beta alloy with 6% Aluminium and 4% Vanadium — aerospace-level strength (830 MPa yield), heat-treatable, but less corrosion resistant than Grade 2 in some environments and harder to fabricate.

Q: When should I use Grade 2 vs Grade 5?

Use Grade 2 when: corrosion resistance is the primary requirement (chemical processing, desalination, marine), weight saving over steel matters, and the loads are moderate. Use Grade 5 when: high strength-to-weight ratio is critical (aerospace, racing, medical implants), operating temperatures reach 300-400°C, and you need fatigue resistance under cyclic loading.

Q: How much does titanium cost in India?

Titanium Grade 2 typically costs ₹3,000-5,000/kg in India depending on product form (plate, pipe, bar). Grade 5 (Ti-6Al-4V) costs ₹5,000-8,000/kg due to more complex alloying and processing. Both are 6-10× the cost of stainless steel 316L but offer 40% weight saving and superior corrosion resistance. Creative Metal Industries imports from VSMPO (Russia), ATI (USA), and Timet.

Titanium offers what no other metal can: the corrosion resistance of a noble metal at 60% the weight of steel. But with over 30 commercially available grades, selecting the right one is critical. The two most widely used grades — Grade 2 (commercially pure) and Grade 5 (Ti-6Al-4V) — serve fundamentally different applications. As an experienced metal importer exporter in India and industrial metal supplier, Creative Metal Industries sources both grades from the world's leading titanium producers.

Titanium Grade 2 — Commercially Pure, Maximum Corrosion Resistance

Grade 2 (UNS R50400, ASTM B265/B337/B338) is commercially pure titanium — 99.2% Ti with controlled oxygen, iron, carbon, and nitrogen as the only "alloying" elements. It is the most widely used of all titanium grades, accounting for over 50% of total titanium consumption in chemical processing and marine industries.

Property	Grade 2 Value
Composition	99.2% Ti, 0.25% Fe max, 0.25% O max
Tensile Strength	345 MPa min
Yield Strength	275 MPa min
Elongation	20% min
Density	4.51 g/cm³ (57% of steel)
Melting Point	1668°C
Corrosion Resistance	Excellent — resists seawater, HNO₃, chlorides, most organics
Weldability	Excellent (inert gas shielding required)
Formability	Excellent — cold forming, deep drawing, spinning
Magnetic	Non-magnetic

Titanium Grade 5 — Ti-6Al-4V, Aerospace-Level Strength

Grade 5 (UNS R56400, ASTM B265/B348/B381) is the workhorse alpha-beta titanium alloy — 6% Aluminium stabilises the alpha phase, 4% Vanadium stabilises the beta phase. This dual-phase structure can be heat-treated to achieve tensile strengths exceeding 1100 MPa while maintaining reasonable ductility. It accounts for over 50% of all titanium used in aerospace.

Property	Grade 5 Value
Composition	Ti-6Al-4V (90% Ti, 6% Al, 4% V)
Tensile Strength	895 MPa min (annealed)
Yield Strength	830 MPa min (annealed)
Elongation	10% min
Density	4.43 g/cm³
Max Service Temperature	315°C (continuous), 400°C (short-term)
Corrosion Resistance	Good — but less than Grade 2 in reducing acids
Weldability	Moderate — requires strict inert gas coverage + stress relief
Formability	Limited — hot forming preferred above 600°C
Heat Treatable	YES — solution treat + age for maximum strength

Strength Comparison — Grade 2 vs Grade 5

Property	Grade 2	Grade 5	SS 316L (ref)
Yield Strength	275 MPa	830 MPa	170 MPa
Tensile Strength	345 MPa	895 MPa	485 MPa
Elongation	20%	10%	40%
Density	4.51 g/cm³	4.43 g/cm³	8.0 g/cm³
Strength-to-Weight	76 MPa·cm³/g	187 MPa·cm³/g	21 MPa·cm³/g
Fatigue Limit	200 MPa	500 MPa	250 MPa

Grade 5 has 3× the yield strength of Grade 2 — but Grade 2 still has 60% higher yield than SS 316L while being 44% lighter.

Corrosion Resistance Comparison

Seawater: Both excellent — titanium is essentially immune to seawater corrosion at all temperatures
Nitric acid (HNO₃): Both excellent — titanium is the preferred material for HNO₃ service
Hydrochloric acid (HCl): Grade 2 is better — resists dilute HCl. Grade 5 is slightly less resistant due to aluminium content
Reducing acids (H₂SO₄): Neither grade excels — both fail in concentrated reducing acids (unlike Hastelloy)
Chloride SCC: Both immune — titanium does not suffer chloride stress corrosion cracking at any temperature
Crevice corrosion: Grade 2 superior — in hot concentrated brines, Grade 7 (Pd-addition) or Grade 12 may be needed for extreme crevice conditions

Key Applications

Grade 2 Applications:

Chemical reactors & heat exchangers
Desalination plant piping
Marine hardware & propellers
Chlor-alkali plant equipment
Power plant condenser tubes
Pulp & paper bleach plant
Architectural cladding

Grade 5 Applications:

Aircraft structural components
Jet engine compressor blades
Medical implants (hip, knee, dental)
Motorsport & Formula 1 parts
Offshore riser stress joints
High-performance fasteners
Pressure vessels (300-400°C)

Cost Considerations — India 2026

Material	Price (₹/kg approx)	vs SS 316L
SS 316L	280-450	Baseline
Titanium Grade 2	3,000-5,000	8-12×
Titanium Grade 5	5,000-8,000	14-20×
Inconel 625	4,000-6,500	12-16×
Hastelloy C-276	4,500-7,000	13-18×

Despite higher material cost, titanium's 40% weight saving + zero maintenance + 30+ year life often makes it the lowest lifecycle cost option for corrosive environments.

Why Source Titanium from Creative Metal Industries?

Global mill sourcing: VSMPO-AVISMA (Russia — world's largest Ti producer), ATI (USA), Timet (USA), Baoji (China) — all with full material certification
Product forms: Pipes (ASTM B337/B338), plates/sheets (B265), bars/rods (B348), fittings (B363), flanges, wire — Grade 1, 2, 5, 7, 9, 12
Certification: MTC 3.1/3.2 with chemical analysis, mechanical properties, and material conformance per ASTM/AMS standards
Cut-to-size: Waterjet cutting for plates and sheets — precise cuts without heat-affected zone on expensive material
Technical support: Grade selection guidance based on your specific media, temperature, and stress conditions
As a specialist metal importer exporter in India, we maintain import channels that ensure availability of these strategic materials even during global supply constraints

Frequently Asked Questions — Titanium Grades

What is the difference between Titanium Grade 2 and Grade 5?

Grade 2 is commercially pure (99.2% Ti) — maximum corrosion resistance, excellent formability, 345 MPa tensile. Grade 5 (Ti-6Al-4V) is an alloy — aerospace strength (895 MPa tensile), heat-treatable, but less formable and slightly less corrosion resistant in reducing environments.

When should I use Grade 2 vs Grade 5?

Grade 2: when corrosion resistance is primary (chemical processing, desalination, marine). Grade 5: when high strength-to-weight is critical (aerospace, medical implants, motorsport, high-temp pressure vessels up to 400°C).

How much does titanium cost in India?

Grade 2: ₹3,000-5,000/kg. Grade 5: ₹5,000-8,000/kg. Both are 8-20× the cost of SS 316L but offer 40% weight saving, zero maintenance, and 30+ year life in corrosive service. Contact CMI for current pricing on your specific product form and quantity.