Tantalum equipment
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Metal tantalum is a very expensive material that is generally used as a lining in the pressure vessel industry. I have once prepared quotes for dozens of heat exchangers for a well-known large state-owned enterprise in China; one of those heat exchangers, with a surface area of around 5 square meters and made of tantalum, had an estimated price of around 700,000 yuan. I am not aware of the actual price at which it was sold, but it is likely to have been around 600,000 yuan. Welding tantalum materials is a challenging aspect in the manufacturing of entire devices. With a melting point of 2999°C, it reacts with elements such as nitrogen and oxygen in the air at temperatures around 200–300 degrees, resulting in oxidation; therefore, welding of tantalum materials must take place in a clean workshop, and special precautions must be taken during the welding process. The welding technology for thin tantalum plates in China is still in the developmental stage; to facilitate welding, it is often necessary to thicken the material, which results in a significant increase in costs (the price of tantalum is around 4 million per ton, which is 100 times that of stainless steel). The structural design of tantalum-based equipment is also quite sophisticated, all of which serves the purpose of manufacturing. The corrosion resistance of tantalum aligns very closely with that of enamel, which is why enamel is commonly used for its associated components.
Those that use equipment made of tantalum are either large state-owned enterprises or foreign-funded companies – all of them have plenty of money, and these enterprises are also quite influential. There’s no choice; other materials sometimes can’t solve the problem, so it’s necessary to use this one. Just like in our country, we have to eat certain foods even though their food hygiene standards are not up to par
Although the initial investment in high-performance equipment is high, it requires very little maintenance later on; overall, it’s still a good deal.
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Tantalum materials aren’t that expensive; the price of tantalum plates with a purity of 99.9 is around 4,500 yuan per kilogram. The challenges lie in processes such as welding and compounding. Welding is generally carried out in an argon-protected glove box. For thin plates, laser welding under argon protection can be considered.
You’re really a boss who isn’t short of money – you’re willing to sell at a high price of 4,000–5,000 RMB per kilogram; that’s 4–5 million RMB per ton, and it’s still not considered expensive: lol
May I ask the original poster: can you weld ￠28×1.5 stainless steel pipes (304 or 316) with tantalum pipes of the same specifications?