Beryllium Copper

Overview

Adding up to 2% of beryllium to copper enables the alloy to retain high electrical conductivity. Equally important, heat-treated beryllium-copper features excellent dimensional stability, fatigue resistance, and corrosion resistance. Its strength is greater than ordinary copper alloys and many steels.

Although beryllium-copper is more costly than some metals, the manufacturing process is usually more economical. Die life can be longer and downtimes for sharpening are usually far shorter.

The very significant metalworking advantages, combined with beryllium-copper's superior operating performance qualities, make it the obvious choice for the most demanding applications.

Attributes and applications:

• Electrical conductivity (electronic and electrical parts)
• Fatigue resistance (automation, oil and gas industries)
• Corrosion resistance (marine-related electronic or electrical apparatus)
• Nonsparking (hand tools)
• Nonmagnetic (magnetic instrument housings, magnetic support structures, and other systems)
• Dimensional stability