Copper extrusion technology is also highly popular these days. The family of copper-based alloys comes with a vast array of technical properties and fabrication characteristics in parts meant to be extruded. The extrusion process gives the benefit of wide range of sizes along with providing edge finish.

Copper Profile Shapes
Some of the popular shapes formed by the copper extrusion process includes hollow shapes, rods, tubes, busbar etc. It has been seen that hollow copper profiles require a broad range of tolerances. Image of hollow profiles are shown below.


Extruded copper rods are another popular category having extensive application in electrical engineering components.

Advantages of Copper Extrusions
Some of the advantages provided by profiles made out of Copper extrusions include the following

• Excellent resistance to corrosion
• High strength
• Ability to take on high polish
• Superior hot or cold working
• Superior machinability
• Suitability for complex forgings
• Excellent electrical and thermal conductivity
• High wear resistance
• Good ductility
• High yield strength
• Ability to be extruded into highly intricate shapes

Design of extruded copper profiles
Following points play an important role in design of the extruded profiles made of copper.

• It has to be noted that, shapes that has thin metal thickness can be difficult to extrude.
  
  
• Solid shapes are generally more easy to extrude than hollow shapes and as a result is less costly to produce. For hollow shapes the wall thickness may be needed to be increased for facilitating extrusion
  
  
• For copper based extrusions, uniform metal flow holds the key to a successful production. That is the reason to give careful consideration to both shape and tolerance demands.
  
  
• For uniform metal flow along with optimum extrusion conditions there is need for symmetry and balance.

Do's and Don'ts in Copper extruded Profile Design Abrupt changes in metal thickness to be avoided Long narrow Tongues to be avoided

Manufacturing Copper Extruded Profiles
These days copper extrusions are made using popular technology called conform extrusions. This method has proved to be very effective in a number of ways. A brief description is given of the conform extrusions process.

The conform extrusion machinery consists of the following things. Rotatory wheel with grooves, a shoe to put lid on the groove, an abutment need to dam the material that is to be extruded, extrusion die, and a die chamber that holds the die. The following image shows a conform extrusion machine. generating extrusion pressure by frictional force of the rotating wheel.


In the conform extrusion process, a copper wire is inserted in the groove of a wheel and it is drawn against the wheel by friction. The material that is drawn is then dammed by using an abutment that is inserted in the groove. As the shoe covers the groove, the extrusion process is generated. The material then flows into the die chamber and subsequently can be extruded from the die in any form.

Application of the Copper extruded profiles
There is a lot of application for the copper extruded profiles. Cooper rods, billets, bars are effectively utilised in the following industries.

• Electrical industry, applications include switchgear, power transformer
• Plumbing industry
• Airconditioning and refrigeration