PREREQUISITES AND PROSPECTS FOR THE UKRAINIAN TITANIUM INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT IN THE POSTWAR PERIOD

Abstract

Introduction. Faced with unprecedented war challenge, Ukraine in addition to external assistance from allied countries need more internal resources to realize the opportunities for the industrial base recovery towards the providing security for the population and further develop in the future. This has been a pivotal factor to realize internal opportunities for industrial development, in particular, in those areas where Ukraine has sufficient resource, production, scientific and human potentials. One of these areas is the creation of a full cycle of production of titanium products as a critically important mineral for national security. Due to its unique properties, corrosion resistance, biocompatibility) titanium called the material of the future, which makes the country that produces such products a significant participant in global economic relations. Materials and methods. The methods of the system approach were used; abstract-logical; economic and statistical methods; calculation and construction; statistical comparisons graphoanalytics. Results and discussion. Ukraine has unique titanium reserves and has been supplying titanium ore to the world market for many years. However, at the moment, the level of application of high-quality titanium materials in Ukraine is limited by many factors, including significant export orientation (more than 80% titanium ores and concentrates produced in Ukraine are exported, and not processed into products with a higher added value), the necessity for modernization the industry's production potential, high processing costs and structural imbalance of products. Also, there is a scientific-research and experimental-design base, established scientific schools in Ukraine in the field of materials science, metallurgy and titanium engineering. They support the further competitive development of science-intensive technologies and industries at a high scientific and practical level. This is confirmed by the results of the scientific activities of specialized research institutions of the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, numerous patents for useful models, projects of fundamental and applied scientific research and scientific and technical (experimental) developments. Further development of the titanium industry depends on the provision of personnel, which is currently complicated by military operations. Conclusions. Based on the characteristics of titanium resources and the current situation in the development of the titanium industry, the entire industrial chain of titanium production in Ukraine should be upgraded. In addition, it is necessary to supplement the consumption structure of titanium materials to expand their implementation. Prerequisites for the development of the titanium industry in Ukraine (resource base, scientific-research and production potential, personnel training system) make it possible to develop into production facilities a full cycle of processing titanium ores and concentrates into titanium sponge, ingots and products, and to become Ukraine a powerful player on the global market of metal titanium products.