Key Characteristics and Benefits:
Enhanced Machinability:
The tellurium particles in the alloy create short, clean chips, allowing for significantly faster cutting speeds and greater detail than pure copper, and leading to reduced tool wear.
High Conductivity:
Telco maintains the high electrical and thermal conductivity of pure copper, which is essential for many electrical and heat-transfer applications.
Formability:
It exhibits good ductility and is suitable for both cold and hot forming processes, including bending and crimping.
Resistance to Hydrogen Embrittlement:
This property makes it a good choice for electrical applications where hydrogen exposure might be a concern.
Applications:
Common uses include electrical connectors, plasma cutting electrodes and nozzles, laser nozzles, relay parts, and specialized components for electrical discharge machining (EDM).
Comparison to Pure Copper:
While Telco's mechanical properties are similar to unalloyed copper, its machinability is vastly improved (rated at 90% compared to pure copper's 20%) while its EDM performance is comparable to pure copper.
