Manufacturers Discover Brazing is Better for Joining Copper to Brass

NEW YORK--July 1, 2004--Manufacturers worldwide are adopting brazing techniques that offer decisive advantages over methods such as welding, soldering or adhesives.

Brazing, a metal-joining technique involving a filler metal alloy that melts at above about 450 C, offers the benefit of strength. A soldered copper-to-brass-joint is not nearly as strong as a brazed joint. Also, brazing does not melt the base metals the way welding does, so dimensions can be tightly controlled and dissimilar alloys can be joined.

CuproBraze, a new type of controlled atmosphere brazing (CAB), eliminates subsequent rinsing and water treatment steps, avoiding strong fluxes such as are required in aluminum brazing. What's more, it is economical enough for mass production.

Roughly a dozen facilities around the globe are employing the CuproBraze process. Radicon, Radac, Young Touchstone and SJT are just a few manufacturers that have added brazing capabilities at facilities in Finland, Thailand, Kentucky and Tennessee, respectively, and production is already under way by other companies in France, Japan and the US.

In Russia and China, CuproBraze has caught on in the automotive industry. Manufacturers are switching from first-generation technologies such as soft soldering directly to third-generation technologies such as copper-brass brazing. SHAAZ opened a high-volume production facility last year in Shadrinsk, Russia, and it is brazing copper-brass radiators and charge air coolers for Russian over-the-road trucks and off-road equipment. In the off-road market for heat exchangers, strong brazed joints allow for the use of brazed copper-brass serpentine fins, which are more durable than their alternatives.

"The early adopters of CuproBraze process can expect to grow with the market for these products," says Nigel Cotton, automotive manager for the International Copper Association.

For technical information, contact the International Copper Association, (212) 251-7245 or write to ICA at 260 Madison Avenue, 16th Floor, New York, NY 10016-2401.

The International Copper Association, Ltd. is the leading organization for the promotion of the use of copper worldwide. The Association's twenty-nine members represent about 80 percent of the world's refined copper output, and its six associate members are among the world's largest copper and copper-alloy fabricators. ICA is responsible for guiding policy, strategy and funding of international initiatives and promotional activities. With headquarters in New York City, ICA operates in 28 worldwide locations through a network of regional offices and copper development associations.