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6061 Aluminum vs. PEEK

6061 aluminum and PEEK belong to fundamentally different material chemistries. 6061 aluminum is a metal, while PEEK is a polymeric material. Therefore, their performance will be even more dissimilar than would be suggested by the difference in properties. There are 16 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (28, in this case) are not shown. Please note that the two materials have significantly dissimilar densities. This means that additional care is required when interpreting the data, because some material properties are based on units of mass, while others are based on units of area or volume.

For each property being compared, the top bar is 6061 aluminum and the bottom bar is PEEK.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 69
4.0 to 24
Elongation at Break, % 3.4 to 20
1.6 to 43
Shear Strength, MPa 84 to 210
50 to 100
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 130 to 410
97 to 200

Thermal Properties

Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 170
330
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 580
340
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 900
1390 to 1700
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 170
0.25 to 0.93
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 24
15 to 52

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Density, g/cm3 2.7
1.3 to 1.5

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 14
1.5 to 10
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 50
36 to 73
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 13 to 42
20 to 41
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 21 to 45
36 to 55
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 68
0.1 to 0.51
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 5.7 to 18
34 to 57