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UNS C23000 (CW502L) Red Brass

C23000 brass is a brass formulated for primary forming into wrought products. CW502L is the EN numeric designation for this material. C23000 is the UNS number. Additionally, the EN chemical designation is CuZn15. The British Standard (BS) designation is CZ102. And the common industry name is 85-15 Red Brass. Older literature may refer to this material as ASTM Brass Type 1, but this is now discouraged.

It has a moderately high thermal conductivity and a moderately high electrical conductivity among wrought brasses.

The properties of C23000 brass include nine common variations. This page shows summary ranges across all of them. For more specific values, follow the links immediately below. The graph bars on the material properties cards further below compare C23000 brass to: wrought brasses (top), all copper alloys (middle), and the entire database (bottom). A full bar means this is the highest value in the relevant set. A half-full bar means it's 50% of the highest, and so on.

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus

110 GPa 16 x 106 psi

Elongation at Break

2.9 to 47 %

Poisson's Ratio

0.33

Rockwell B Hardness

48 to 87

Rockwell Superficial 30T Hardness

51 to 77

Shear Modulus

42 GPa 6.1 x 106 psi

Shear Strength

220 to 340 MPa 31 to 49 x 103 psi

Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS)

280 to 590 MPa 40 to 86 x 103 psi

Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof)

83 to 480 MPa 12 to 70 x 103 psi

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion

190 J/g

Maximum Temperature: Mechanical

170 °C 340 °F

Melting Completion (Liquidus)

1030 °C 1880 °F

Melting Onset (Solidus)

990 °C 1810 °F

Specific Heat Capacity

390 J/kg-K 0.092 BTU/lb-°F

Thermal Conductivity

160 W/m-K 92 BTU/h-ft-°F

Thermal Expansion

19 µm/m-K

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume

37 % IACS

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific)

39 % IACS

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price

28 % relative

Calomel Potential

-350 mV

Density

8.6 g/cm3 540 lb/ft3

Embodied Carbon

2.6 kg CO2/kg material

Embodied Energy

43 MJ/kg 18 x 103 BTU/lb

Embodied Water

310 L/kg 38 gal/lb

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work)

6.2 to 260 MJ/m3

Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience)

31 to 1040 kJ/m3

Stiffness to Weight: Axial

7.2 points

Stiffness to Weight: Bending

19 points

Strength to Weight: Axial

8.9 to 19 points

Strength to Weight: Bending

11 to 18 points

Thermal Diffusivity

48 mm2/s

Thermal Shock Resistance

9.4 to 20 points

Alloy Composition

Among wrought copper alloys, the composition of C23000 brass is notable for containing comparatively high amounts of iron (Fe) and lead (Pb). Iron is used to increase strength inexpensively. Lead is used to improve machinability and bearing properties, at the cost of toxicity.

Copper (Cu)Cu 84 to 86
Zinc (Zn)Zn 13.7 to 16
Iron (Fe)Fe 0 to 0.050
Lead (Pb)Pb 0 to 0.050
Residualsres. 0 to 0.2

All values are % weight. Ranges represent what is permitted under applicable standards.

Followup Questions

Similar Alloys

Further Reading

ASTM B134: Standard Specification for Brass Wire

ASTM B36: Standard Specification for Brass Plate, Sheet, Strip, And Rolled Bar

Copper: Its Trade, Manufacture, Use, and Environmental Status, Gunter Joseph, 2001

Properties and Selection: Nonferrous Alloys and Special-Purpose Materials, ASM Handbook vol. 2, ASM International, 1993