GUN METAL/BRONZE V/S SS MATERIAL IN VALVE(COST PERSPECTIVE) 2

[skengg]

Hello,
i have some doubt,
As SS material(Normally SS 304 Or SS 316) is generally superior in almost all aspect as compared to Bronze/Gun metal in valves field. but still Gun metal scrap cost more than SS. What are the reasons?

 

[Danlap]

Law of supply and demand.
Bronze is mainly from copper and tin. Main producers are Chile, Peru and China.
Stainless steel is mainly from iron, nickel and chromium.

Copper have better thermal conductivity so it is widely used by other industries as well such as wires, etc. not sure how much the demand spread is, I assume those industries requires more of copper more than us need it for valve body and trim.
Aside from small sizes bronze valves for utilities application (which can be found in most hardware store), I don’t think there are so many player who made good quality bronze valve for medium and/or bigger sizes. Maybe that is also a factor.

 

[Nick_Gray_88]

Working for a manufacturer who makes Bronze valves there are 4-5 manufacturers globally who produce products worthy buying.
Depending on the application Bronze can be superior to Stainless, I’ve seen a stainless valve fail in 5 years whereas a Bronze equivalent has been shown to last 30years+.

Bronze is niche and hard to do right so you pay a premium for that but the through life costs in the right application are usually less than a stainless valve.

 

[skengg]

thanks for conveying all useful information.