Explore the electrical conductivity of common copper and aluminum alloys

Copper, aluminum and their alloys are materials often used in high voltage switchgear products.

This standard lists the electrical conductivity of commonly used copper, aluminum and their alloys, serving as a reference for design, process, quality inspection and purchasing personnel in their work.

1. Scope

This standard provides reference values ​​for the electrical conductivity of copper, aluminum and their alloys. It is intended to be a reference in the design, process, quality inspection and acquisition of high voltage switch products and components.

2. Terminology

Electric conductivity

The reciprocal of resistivity is known as electrical conductivity. It corresponds to the current that passes through a unit area when the conductor maintains a unit potential gradient (i.e., voltage difference).

According to the IEC standard, the electrical conductivity of standard soft copper with a resistivity of 1.7241μΩ·cm is considered 100%, and the electrical conductivity of other materials is compared with it, expressed in% IACS.

Based on the above definition, this standard provides reference values ​​for the electrical conductivity of materials with only resistivity found (highlighted in bold and italics in the table). The calculation method is as follows:

Material conductivity ÷ Standard soft copper conductivity × 100% = IACS unit conductivity

For example; the resistivity of ZL101A is known as 0.0442 x 16-6Ω.m, the conductivity is:

(1/0.0442) ÷ (1/0.017241) × 100% = 22.624 ÷ 58 × 100% = 39% IACS

3. Electrical Conductivity of Cast Copper and Copper Alloys

See Table 1 for electrical conductivity of molten copper and copper alloys.

Table 1: Electrical Conductivity of Cast Copper and Copper Alloys

4. Electrical Conductivity of Cast Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys

See Table 2 for electrical conductivity of cast aluminum and aluminum alloys.

5. Electrical Conductivity of Machined Copper and Copper Alloys

The electrical conductivity of machined copper and copper alloys can be found in Table 3.

6. Electrical Conductivity of Machined Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys

See Table 4 for information on the electrical conductivity of machined aluminum and aluminum alloys.

Table 2: Electrical Conductivity of Cast Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys

Table 3: Electrical Conductivity of Processed Copper and Copper Alloys

Table 4: Electrical Conductivity of Processed Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys