COPPER AND ITS ALLOYS

Properties :-

High electrical & heat conductivity.

Very malleable and ductile.

Non magnetic & fairly strong.

Corroded by salt water.

Its tensile strength is 25000psi.

But when cold rolled or cold drawn, its

tensile strength increases to 40,000 to
67,000 psi.

Can be used in A/c in electrical system,

locking wires, bonging wire.

Cu tubing are also used in the fuel & oil

lines.
 COPPER ALLOYS
BRASS :

It is an alloy of Cu & Zn
Contains Cu 65-70%, Zn 30-35%.

BRONZE :

It is an alloy of Cu and Sn
Contains Cu 84-86%, Sn 4-6%, Pb 4-6%.
Alloy containing 11% Sn are used for
tube fittings in the a/c.
BERREYLIUM Cu :
Contains 2% Be, 97% Cu
Sufficient percentage of Ni to increase the
percentage of elongation.

Tensile strength is 70,000 psi & can be

increased to 2,00,000 psi by heat treatment.

Resistance to wear & fatigue.

Used for precision bearing, bushing, ball

cages & spring washers.
MUNTZ METALS :

Compositions :

60% Cu & Zn 40%.

Strong corrosion resistance qualities

in salt water.

Used for making bolts & nuts, and

such parts which comes in contact
with salt water.
GERMAN SILVER :

Compositions :

Cu 45-60%, Zn 20-35%, Ni 5-35%.

Used for electrical wires, fittings & for

utensils.
DELTA METAL :

Composition :

Cu 60%, Zn 37%, Fe 3%.

Strength is as high as MS & good

corrosion resistant.
BELL METAL :

Cu 80%, Zn 20%

Normally used as filler rods for brazing.

BABIT METAL :

An alloy of Cu, Sn, & Antimony

Used as a bearing material.

GUN METAL :

Composition

Cu - 86-89%

Sn - 9-11%

Zn - 1-3%

Pb - 0.2%

Fe - 0.6%.
TUNGUM :

An alloy of Cu, Zn, Al, Ni, Si.

Used for manufacturing high pressure

pipe line of British A/c.
WROUGHT Al BRONZE :

Composition :

Cu, Pb, Sn, Zn, P, & wrought Al.

As strong & ductile as Medium Carbon

Steel
Possess a high degree of resistance to
corrosion by air, salt water, chemicals.

Good tearing qualities, great strength

& hardness, resistance to both shock &
fatigue.
 Used for Gears & Pumps.

Silicon Bronze :
Composition :

Cu - 95%

Silicon - 3%

Mn, Zn, Sn, Tin & Al - 2%

Has got good strength & corrosion

resistance.
Cu – Si – Bronze :

Composition :

Cu - 86-93%
Si - 1-5%
Mn - 1.5%
Zn - 2.5%
Fe - 2-5%

Used for tubing a/c work.

 SEASON CRACKING OF
BRASS & BRONZE

Brass & bronze metal are exposed to

atmosphere during their service

They develop cracks

These cracks are called season cracking.

To get rid of season cracking, the

components are annealed to low temp
(600ºF) once in a year to relieve the stresses.
 DETECTING CRACKS

Dip in the solution of 100gm Mercurous Nitrate

& 13cc Nitric Acid dissolved in a liter of water.

After that it is washed with water & alcohol.

If there are season cracking they will appear

within 24 hr.

This treatment is sometime known as strain

test.