How is copper product's electrical conductivity performance?
Metal's electrical conductivity property is more important than mechanical and thermal properties under many circumstances. Materials of conductive, resistance, thermo electric,semiconducting, superconducting and insulation are based on its electrical conductivity property. For example, plain conductor for long distance should have high electrical conductivity, in order to reduce power loss due to wire heating.
Resistivity and electrical conductivity
Resistivity is a physical quantity used to indicate the electrical resistance characteristics of various materials. The ratio of the product of the resistance of an original made of a substance (20 ° C at normal temperature) to the cross-sectional area is called the resistivity of the substance. The resistivity is independent of the length and cross-sectional area of the conductor. It is the electrical property of the conductor material itself. It is determined by the material of the conductor and is related to external factors such as temperature, pressure and magnetic field. The unit of resistivity in the International System of Units is Ω·m.
Substances with lower resistivity are called conductors, and common conductors are mainly metals. On the contrary, other non-conductive materials such as glass, rubber, etc., have higher resistivity and are generally called insulators.
| Metal | Resistivity (Ω·m) |
|---|---|
| Silver | 1.6 * 10-8 |
| Copper | 1.7 * 10-8 |
| Aluminum | 2.8 * 10-8 |
| Steel | 10 * 10-8 |
Electrical conductivity of metals
The best conductive properties under normal conditions are silver, copper, and aluminum. These three materials are the most commonly used and are often used as wires. Silver is expensive, so copper is the most widely used, and almost all of the wires used are made of copper (except for precision instruments and special occasions).
The aluminum wire has been eliminated due to chemical instability and oxidation. Because aluminum has a small density, is widely available, and is cheaper than copper, it is widely used in overhead transmission lines that transmit electricity in power systems. In order to solve the defects of insufficient rigidity of aluminum, steel-core aluminum stranded wire is generally used, that is, a steel wire is wrapped inside the aluminum stranded wire to improve the strength. Silver has the best conductivity, but it is rarely used because of its high cost. It is only used in high-demand applications, such as precision instruments, high-frequency oscillators, and aerospace.
In some cases, the contacts on the instrument are also useful in gold because the chemical nature of gold is stable, not because of its low resistivity.
Copper's conductivity property
As we know, there are many copper designations, which indentify differenct set of copper chemical composition. Take C11000 and C12200 for example, the chemical composition of C12200 phosphorus deoxidized copper is mainly copper + silver, tin, lead, etc. The advantages are ductility, corrosion resistance, thermal conductivity, and weldability are better than C11000 copper, but the conductivity is decreased.
- C12200 copper's conductivity is 79%IACS
- C11000 copper's conductivity is 97%IACS
Winland supplies annealed C11000 copper tubes of high enectrical conductivity property. You are welcome to email us to request a free quotation.
