Brass Flare Fitting vs. Steel Fitting

Corrosion

• Brass is stronger, cheaper and more reliable than steel. While there are some grades of expensive stainless, like the famously strong 316, these are generally expensive and might not pass the typical industrial budgetary muster. Even if the 316 grade was approved, it would still require to be treated with a zinc solution to protect it from corrosion. Since brass already contains zinc, it is corrosionproof. In industries where harsh chemicals are used, the brass can be coated with a nickel, which makes it nearly impregnable to the most acidic of solutions.

Efficiency

• Brass is roughly between 40 and 50 percent more efficient in conducting energy, heat or product like oil than steel of nearly all grades is. This increase in conductivity and efficiency is coupled with a far greater strength and resistance to the pressures of substances like oil, gas and chemicals of all kinds. Brass has the added advantage of being almost totally immune to changes in temperature. Since the petroleum industry, heavily dependent on strong and maintenance-free settings, is often located in either desert or tundra, this is a very important aspect of brass's clear superiority to steel.

Workability

• Brass is, speaking generally, about 10 percent denser than most grades of steel. This is significant since density here usually translates into strength. Since brass is more tensile, that is, malleable and bendable, than steel, brass is then both easier to work with and stronger. Because of its ability to withstand temperature changes and corrosion, the brass flares are maintenance-free, while steel fittings need to be constantly checked for both signs of wear and corrosion.

Waste

• Steel is almost always more expensive than brass because it is harder to work with. More waste is produced with steel than with brass. Whatever brass waste there is can be quickly sold as scrap without losing any of its value. This is not the case with steel. Even when brass flare fittings finally wear out, they can easily be sold as scrap, and usually at a fairly high rate, since brass scrap is very easy to recycle.