Copper uses in Electricity

With its exceptional current carrying capacity, copper is more efficient than any other electrical conductor Because of its superior conductivity, annealed copper is the international standard to which all other electrical conductors are compared . In 1913, the international Electro-Technical Commission set the conductivity of copper at 100% in their International annealed Copper Standard (IACS). This means that copper provides more current carrying capacity for a given diameter of wire than any other engineering metal. Today, copper conductors used in building wire actually have a conductivity rating of 100% or better, based on the IACS scale.   

Pure copper has the highest electrical conductivity of any commercial metal. This property makes it the preferred material for power and telecommunications cables, magnet (winding) wire, printed circuit board conductors and a host of other electrical applications. Copper has sufficient strength, ductility and hardness for these applications at operating temperatures up to 100°C. For many other applications, however, the demands of electrical technology require copper to have higher mechanical properties and to be capable of use at elevated operating temperatures while still retaining the good conductivity for which it is selected in the first place.

Copper is the optimal material for electric current conductors. It combines high electric conductivity and a reasonable price. But many wire and cable applications require a strength which exceeds the strength attainable with pure copper wire, e.g. connector pins. In these cases the use of copper alloys becomes necessary. Strength increase in alloys is possible by two different metallurgical effects, solid solution hardening and precipitation hardening. Brass and bronze are widely used solid solution hardened alloys. Certain high copper alloys with low contents of alloying elements, e.g. Ni, Si, and Cr, are precipitation hardened and offer an interesting combination of high strength, good electrical conductivity and relaxation resistance.

With copper, you get:

Superior current carrying capacity for narrower conduits

Easier installation – no need for special connectors, tools, compounds and procedures

Wire fill and expansion possibilities

Resistance to stretching, neck-down, creep, nicks, breaks and corrosion

No extra maintenance and repair calls due to poor performance and breakdowns

Extra protection against liability for possible problems in service Over the life of your system, the strength, efficiency and performance of copper almost always make it the most cost-effective wiring material available today.