ASTM B68

This specification establishes the requirements for bright annealed seamless copper tube suitable for use in refrigeration, oil lines, gasoline lines, and so forth, where tube with an interior surface essentially free from scale and dirt is required. The tube shall be manufactured by such hot- or cold-working processes as to produce a homogeneous uniform wrought structure in the finished product. The tube shall be cold drawn to the finished size and wall thickness and shall be bright annealed to meet the specified temper. The material shall conform to the chemical composition requirements prescribed and the tube shall be furnished in either of two annealed tempers, light annealed or soft annealed. Grain size and mechanical properties such as tensile strength and elongation shall be determined. The material shall be subjected to expansion and flattening tests to evaluate its performance. An electromagnetic or eddy-current test, a nondestructive test, shall be done as well.

This abstract is a brief summary of the referenced standard. It is informational only and not an official part of the standard; the full text of the standard itself must be referred to for its use and application. ASTM does not give any warranty express or implied or make any representation that the contents of this abstract are accurate, complete or up to date.

1. Scope

1.1 This specification establishes the requirements for bright annealed seamless copper tube suitable for use in refrigeration, oil lines, gasoline lines, and so forth, where tube with an interior surface essentially free from scale and dirt is required.

1.1.1 Tubes made from any of the following Copper UNS No. designations shall be supplied, unless otherwise specified in the contract or purchase order:

1.2 Values stated in inch-pound units are the standard except for grain size, which is given in SI units.

1.3 This specification is the companion to SI Specification B 68M; therefore, no SI equivalents are presented in this specification.

1.4 The following hazard statement pertains only to the test method described in Sections 20.5 and 21.2.6 of this specification: This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

2. Referenced Documents

ASTM Standards
B153 Test Method for Expansion (Pin Test) of Copper and Copper-Alloy Pipe and Tubing
B251 Specification for General Requirements for Wrought Seamless Copper and Copper-Alloy Tube
B577 Test Methods for Detection of Cuprous Oxide (Hydrogen Embrittlement Susceptibility) in Copper
B601 Classification for Temper Designations for Copper and Copper Alloys--Wrought and Cast
B68M Specification for Seamless Copper Tube, Bright Annealed [Metric]
B846 Terminology for Copper and Copper Alloys
E112 Test Methods for Determining the Average Grain Size
E243 Practice for Electromagnetic (Eddy-Current) Examination of Copper and Copper-Alloy Tubes
E255 Practice for Sampling Copper and Copper Alloys for Determination of Chemical Composition
E29 Practice for Using Significant Digits in Test Data to Determine Conformance with Specifications
E3 Guide for Preparation of Metallographic Specimens
E527 Practice for Numbering Metals and Alloys (UNS)
E53 Test Methods for Determination of Copper in Unalloyed Copper by Gravimetry
E62 Test Methods for Chemical Analysis of Copper and Copper Alloys (Photometric Methods)
E8 Test Methods for Tension Testing of Metallic Material

Index Terms

bright annealed; copper tube; seamless tube; ICS Number Code 77.150.30 (Copper products)

Citing ASTM Standards

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