[Poohbah]

The titanium and aluminum would cause the bimetallic corrosion in the expanding rod warhead.

The rod joints are made of the same metal as the rest of the rod.

[eno_]

While you may be correct that the joints of a continuous rod used in a SAM warhead are made of the same material as the rod ( I still don't have a good source on continuous rod design), it is not possible for atoms of metal (or any other element) used as an additive in a ceramic to cause bimetallic corrosion. This has to do with how ceramic additives work. To sum it up, once they are in the ceramic, they ain't going anywhere, and they ain't reacting with nuthin'.

I still think that if it is found that a SAM of the TWA800 vintage had a warhead that incorporated such ceramic balls - in a continuous rod or other component - there is the smoking gun in TWA800. The parts described would have been cutting edge technology at the time, and would probably uniquely identify the type or class of missile used.