Demo One Enduring Bronze -
The Metal of the Ages
Traditional Bronze is a copper alloy with up to 10%
tin. The tin in bronze makes it more resistant to wear than
unalloyed copper. Bronzes today are usually stronger and more
resistant to corrosion than brass.

Contemporary bronzes are typically copper alloys that may
contain silicon, manganese, aluminium, lead, iron and other
elements, with or without tin.
The variations in bronze composition significantly affect its
characteristics. Durability, machine ability,
corrosion-resistance and ductility for deep drawing are often
considered.
Bronze Grade A 5%
1922° F.
Modern Bronze
Copper - Tin alloy
from 3% tin (mild bronze) to 25% tin (bell metals)

The first metal used by man was copper so it is natural that the first
alloys widely used were copper alloys. The two alloys of most
significance are bronze and brass. Bronze is an alloy of copper and tin,
while brass is an alloy of copper and zinc. Recently many objects,
thought to be bronze, have been found to be brass. Since the patina and
color of bronze and brass are almost indistinguishable from each other.

All copper-tin alloys with more than 78% copper are called bronzes.
They are chemically very stable. When in dry air the metal does not
change at all, while in moist air they produce a beautiful, green,
pore-free, surface film (patina) which protects the layers it covers from
corrosion.

The tin content makes the alloy hard, bronzes with 6% tin can still be
rolled, or hammered, while bronzes with 10-20% tin are usually require
casting. Bronzes with more than 20% tin are used for bell casting, these
alloys are hard and rather brittle, but when struck they emit a clear
note. Even higher tin content (up to 40%) produces radiantly white
alloys; like the bell alloys these are brittle and hard, but accept a
beautiful polish. They were used for bronze mirrors even in antiquity,
and today are called speculum (mirror) alloys.
Bronze Ingots ready to be fired.
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Weathering and Patination:
The oxidation process that gives Bronze its characteristic
green patina is a result of exposure to an acidic atmosphere.
The process is, therefore, faster in some metropolitan,
marine, and industrial areas, where higher concentrations of
pollutants exist. When acidic moisture comes in contact with
exposed Bronze surfaces, it reacts with the copper to form
copper sulfate. The acid is neutralized during the reaction
with the copper. This patina eventually covers the surface
and adheres tightly to it, thus providing a protective layer
against further weathering.
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Bronze plaques are manufactured using sand molds in
a state-of-the-art foundry from raw ingot alloyed in the
following materials:        
  • Copper Alloy C92200;
  • 88% copper, 6% tin, 4% zinc, 2% lead.
Bronze plaques are the choice for interior as well as exterior
applications. Although the finish of bronze will naturally patina over
time, the material itself will not deteriorate. Objects made from
bronze have been found submerged in seawater for over 3000 years
still in excellent condition.
The weight of a bronze plaque may be roughly
estimated by calculating the following formula:
(height x width x depth) x .31.
For most smaller plaques (under 36" x 30") allow
.25" as the approximate depth.
Use .375" for plaques over 36" x 30".
Bronze was the first alloy intentionally manufactured and used by
man. Early bronze was an alloy of copper and arsenic that occur
together naturally, and was used from about 4,000 BC until
about 3,500 BC. While we do not really know, the copper-arsenic
alloys probably fell of favor because:
1. They were unpredictable in composition, giving unpredictable
properties to the finished product.
2. The smelting process releases arsenic gas, probably killing the
metalworkers and causing the uses to think the metal was evil.

About 3,500 BC true bronze started to appear. This true bronze
was harder and less brittle than copper-arsenic bronzes, could be
made copper and tin ingots if the natural materials were not
available, and could be made the same every time.

Bronze was widely used for utilitarian and artistic purposes until
iron became cheaper and more plentiful. Bronze continued to
have wide utilitarian uses until it became cost prohibitive, now
except for a few applications as a bearing metal in the engineering
and automobile industries has fallen out of use. Artistically
bronze is still widely used in casting sculptures of all sizes,
plaques, and bell founding.
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