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<div>This paper concerns the characteristics of the material considered as one of the potentially applicable ones under the research topic "Sustainable lead-free fittings for drinking water and gas installations - machinability and connection possibilities".One of the main assumptions of the project were eliminating the recrystallization annealing process because of the use of controlled cooling after forging. The test material was lead-free brass CuZn21Si3P. The subject of the research is the thermoplastic forming process, which allows determining the relationship between the influence of the deformation amount, the temperature at the beginning and end of forging, and the cooling rate on the formation of an acicular structure. The tests were carried out on a mechanical press after heating the samples to temperatures of 700 °C, 770 °C and 820 °C. Strain values of 50% and 70% were used. After the process, the samples were cooled using a laboratory tunnel or in air. Then, the quality of the forging was classified based on surface observations. This work discusses the deformation conditions that cause the formation of a relief on the surface of the tested samples, which indicates the overheating of the material and the presence of an acicular structure in it.</div>

Keywords: CuZn21Si3P, lead-free brass, thermoplastic forming process, acicular microstructure

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