# Investigation of CuTi Alloy for Applications as Non-Sparking Material
## 1 Introduction  
Both humanitarian and economic considerations explain the need to minimize the occurrence of explosions and flash fires in workplaces. Explosions and fires can cause extremely serious injuries and death. Eliminating the sources of sparks (electrical or mechanical) that cause explosions can significantly reduce the risk of deflagration, particularly in environments that are prone to deflagration.  
Electrical and mechanical sparks are the main source of ignition in various situations in industrial installations and factories [1]. To reduce the intensity of sparks, systems are usually manufactured from non-sparking metallic or non-metallic materials used where the application allows it.  
Cu-Be alloys are usually alloyed with Be up to a limit of 3-4%, but processing them with various methods can introduce contaminants into the working atmosphere and becomeharmful to workers in the field. OHSA (Occupational Health and Safety Administration) has set a limit of 1.95 g/m\({}^{3}\) of Be in the working atmosphere of the warehouse for a working time of 7-10 h, as Be is considered to be dangerous to humans [2]. Cu alloys with high Be concentrations can cause illness, and prolonged exposure can cause headaches and dizziness. The need for new alloys to replace those with beryllium is increasingly urgent both due to their production methods, which are considered toxic at a certain level (exposure level: Be > 30 \(\mu\)g/m\({}^{3}\)), and due to the mechanical properties they possess [3].  
The attempt to replace CuBe-based alloys was mainly initiated by the recognition of the health risks associated with the metallurgical production of Be-based alloys. CuBe alloys are considered typical elastic alloys and are generally used for special applications owing to their high-performance properties [4; 5]; however, the toxicity and high cost of Be severely limit their applications [6].  
The replacement of CuBe alloys has been under development for a long time, with particular attention being focused on CuTi alloys [7]. CuTi alloys are increasingly being recognized as very high-strength conductive materials for applications such as conductive arcs, interconnects, anti-spark materials, etc., essentially replacing the conventional CuBe series of alloys. Most research on CuTi alloys was performed on their main component phases and their stability, producing methods, hydrogen solubility or processing procedures [8; 9; 10; 11]. No results are reported on their ability to be used as anti-spark materials in potentially explosive atmospheres, although they are marketed in some areas as replacement materials for tools made of CuBe. To conclude, copper-titanium alloys are composed primarily of Cu and contain between 2 and 6 (wt%) titanium, with the ideal titanium content being between 3 and 5 wt%. If the content of Ti is less than 2 wt%, no significant age-hardening effect can be expected, and the addition of more than 6 wt% Ti does not provide a correspondingly increased age-hardening effect.  
In most practical applications, the materials are in a processed state (heat treatment or plastic deformation to modify the cast structure). Starting from the cast state, in this work, the properties of the materials after hot rolling were analyzed to confirm the possibility of their further processing in various devices and to present a processing method for this new alloy.  
The main purpose of the work is to answer the question of whether the CuTi alloy can be considered a spark-proof material, and the investigations found that it does not produce sparks causing explosions in potentially explosive atmospheres. The main properties of this alloy for two different chemical compositions were also evaluated. The aim of this manuscript is to study the ability of sparks generated by CuTi alloy to ignite an explosive atmosphere during an aggressive wear regime and the suitability of this alloy for use as a substitute for CuBe alloy.