Titanium

Hailed as the "new aluminium", titanium was isolated only relatively recently. The metal has the highest strength to density ratio of all known metals and its resistance to corrosion in sea water and chlorine suggests a wide range of potential physical and arcane applications.

Availability

Although titanium oxides are found worldwide, the pure metal is difficult to extract and hard to work. Only one country, the Telian Kingdom, produces it industrially and the process of refinement from ore is a state secret and grains of titanium traded on the metals market fetch exorbitant sums making it, gram for gram, the most expensive material in the world.
Export revenues of the metal make up the bulk of Telia's income, providing the country with enormous economic power and contributing to a national wealth fund which has seen mass-modernisation and lifted even the poorest and most rural areas out of poverty. To reflect its importance, the official regalia of the monarch of Telia has incorporated a titanium circlet as a symbol of office and gifts of small titanium figurines are used to seal international treaties.

Arcane uses

Titanium is classed as an air metal due to its low density, chemical affinity to oxygen, conductivity and lustre. It and all of its non-ferrous alloys can be enchanted, but its rarity and phenomenal expense means that it is most commonly found in laboratory settings, and is used as an ingredient rather than a recpticle.
Titanium shows a high level of biocompatibility and resistance to corrosion; these traits suggest that, should the purified material ever be widely available, it may be a much sought-after additional source of medically insertable protective spells.

Alchemical correspondences

Titanium carries cultural associations with secrecy, wealth, equity, and soft power. Its hardness and resistance to corrosion make it a symbol of unbreakable vows, incorruptability, and purity.

Type

Metal

Color

Silver-grey, metallic

Boiling / Condensation Point

3287 °C

Melting / Freezing Point

1668 °C

Density

4.506 g/cm3

Common State

Solid