Wire, Rod, & Bar
Wire is a long, thin string of aluminum that can carry electrical
current or help screen bugs from your home. Made from rod or bar, wire
is, by definition, less than three-eighths of an inch in diameter. Rod
and bar are larger. Rod is round, while bar can have any number of flat
sides.
The Production Process
Aluminum rod, bar, and wire products can be produced by several
different processes.
One method of making these products is similar to rolling sheet. A
long, square ingot is heated, progressively reduced in cross-section by
passing it through a series of rolls, and then coiled. The coils are
heated for softening and, if they are slated to become wire, the rod is
pulled through smaller and smaller dies on a wire-drawing machine.
Electrical conductor is made by stranding several wires into a single
length.
Bar, rod, and tube can also be made by the drawing method directly
from stock produced by hot extrusion. This process is also completed by
the progressive thinning of the aluminum material through the use of
dies.
Electrical conductor rod can also be drawn and stranded directly from
molten aluminum.
Products
Electrical transmission
lines are the largest users of aluminum rod/bar/wire products. In fact,
this is the one market in which aluminum has virtually no competition
from other metals. Aluminum is simply the most economical way to deliver
electrical power.
Aluminum wire and cable are also used almost everywhere there is an
electrical impulse to conduct: in commercial buildings, in machinery and
equipment, and in transportation and consumer durables. Wire and cable
are used for little jobs we seldom think about, including the
non-rusting staples in tea bags and the retwistable twist in
twist-ties.
Rod and bar become the rivets, nails, screws, bolts, and parts of all
kinds of machinery and equipment. As chain-link fence material, aluminum
wire keeps the dog at home, while up on the roof—as a lightning
rod—aluminum protects our homes. Non-rusting nails keep redwood
fences and decks looking prettier.
Drawn tube carries liquids in heat exchangers, food processing
equipment, water treatment plants, and other industrial
applications.
