Silicon Bronze C65500 (Bronze CDA 65500) is comprised of 95% Copper, with 4% Silicon and 1% Manganese to combine high strength and good hot and cold formability with excellent welding characteristics. Additionally, Silicon Bronze 65500 exhibits good resistance to corrosion by brine and sulfite solutions, non-oxidizing inorganic acids, alkalis, and other mixtures. The mechanical and chemical properties of Silicon Bronze 65500 are similar to those of stainless steel.
Silicon Bronzes are commonly used in pump and valve components, fasteners, piston rings, and marine hardware industries.
Details
Silicon Bronze C65500 (CuSi3Mn1) is a wrought single phase alloy with additions of silicon and manganese to increase the strength.
The alloy can be strengthened by heat treatment, resulting from an age-hardening process in which Manganese silicides are precipitated from a solid-solution, copper-rich matrix. This alloy can be further strengthened by cold work prior to the precipitation process and again following heat treatment. This enables the alloy to be supplied in various tempers from half hard to extra hard depending on the final application.
Bronze C65500 being primarily a single-phase alloy of high copper content exhibits excellent corrosion properties in seawater and other polluted water systems.
It also has anti-bio-fouling properties in seawater and exhibits antimicrobial properties against many harmful microbes. Recently, Bronze C65500 was proven to have anti-microbial applications in hospital environments to combat the spread of viral bacteria and, as a result, has been registered by the Environment Protection Agency.
