ASTM B819-19 Seamless Copper Tube for Medical Gas Systems

Edition and status

ASTM lists B819-19 as active, last updated on 15 October 2019. It is developed by Subcommittee B05.04, has 8 pages and appears in Book of Standards Volume 02.01 (ICS 11.040.10). Inch-pound values are the standard; SI values in parentheses are conversions for information only.

What it covers

• Two wall thickness schedules of specially cleaned, straight lengths of seamless copper tube, Types K and L, which are defined in ASTM B88.
• Manufacture by hot working to a tube and cold working to the finished size, supplied in the H58 (Drawn General Purpose) temper; drawn temper tube is suitable for capillary (solder joint) fittings for brazing.
• Tension and Rockwell hardness tests for tensile strength and hardness, and a nondestructive eddy-current test.
• Cleaning by one of the recommended methods: alkaline washing, steam solvent washing, steam detergent washing, steam washing, vapor degreasing or refrigerant degreasing.

Installation codes it names

B819-19 states that the tube shall be installed in conformance with NFPA 99, NFPA 99C, NFPA 99B and CSA Z305.1/Z7396.1. NFPA lists the 2027 edition of NFPA 99 as current, and CSA Group lists CSA Z7396.1:22 as its newest edition, so check the current edition of each code named in a specification.

What it does not cover

The specification is limited to straight lengths of seamless tube in the H58 drawn temper. For installation it refers to the codes named above.

Relation to other standards

PATH's November 2024 piping FAQ notes that ASTM B819 is used in North and Latin America. In Europe the standard for seamless round copper tubes for medical gases or vacuum is EN 13348:2016, which applies to outside diameters from 6 mm up to 219 mm at operating pressures up to 2 000 kPa.