Product Code Database
Phosphor bronze is a member of the family of . It is composed of copper that is alloy with 0.5–11% of tin and 0.01–0.35% phosphorus, and may contain other elements to confer specific properties (e.g. lead at 0.5–3.0% to form machinability phosphor bronze). The tin increases the corrosion resistance and strength of the alloy, while the phosphorus increases its wear resistance and stiffness. Phosphor Bronze; Copper Development Association
Phosphor bronze alloys are notable for their toughness, strength, low coefficient of friction, and fine crystallite. The phosphorus reduces the viscosity of the molten alloy, which makes it easier and cleaner to casting and reduces grain boundary between crystallites. It was originally formulated by the Belgian Georges Montefiore-Levi and the German Karl Künzel. JStR, No. 1,276, 1877, p. 551
Phosphor bronze comes in a wide array of standard alloys, including nonferrous spring alloys, free-machining phosphor bronze, and bearing bronze. The combination of good physical properties, fair electrical conductivity, and moderate cost make phosphor bronze wire (available in standard round, square, flat, and special formats) desirable for many springs, electrical contacts, and a wide variety of wire forms where the desired properties do not require the use of the more-expensive beryllium copper.
Phosphor bronze with 94.8% copper, 5% tin, and 0.2% phosphorus is also used in cryogenics. In this application, its combination of fair electrical conductivity and low thermal conductivity allows the making of electrical connections to devices at ultra-low temperatures without adding excessive heat.
Phosphor bronze is one of several high-copper-content alloys used as a substitute for the more-common "yellow" or "cartridge" types of brass to construct the bodies and bells of metal wind instruments. Examples of instruments constructed using high-copper alloys occur among members of the brass instrument family (, , and trombones) and one member of the reed instrument family, . In addition to the distinctive appearance provided by the reddish-orange hue of high-copper alloys, they are purported by some instrument designers, sellers, and players to provide a broader harmonic response spectrum for a given instrument design. The Yanagisawa 902/992 model saxophones (pictured) have bodies of phosphor bronze, in contrast to the brass 901/991 models.
Some instrument vibrating string for acoustic guitars, , and violins are wrapped with phosphor bronze. Some harmonica Free reed are made of phosphor bronze, such as those by Suzuki Musical Instrument Corporation and Bushman Harmonicas.
The reed component of reed-type is usually made of phosphor bronze owing to its high wear resistance and low deformability under conditions of constant vibration when producing sound.
Some are constructed with phosphor bronze.
Some tambourine jingles are made of phosphor bronze.
Around 2001, the Olin Corporation developed another alloy for use in electrical and electronic connectors which they referred to as "phosphor bronze". Its composition was as follows:
When assessed in strictly metallurgical terms it is not a phosphor bronze, but a form of iron-modified tin brass.
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