2024 Aluminum vs. Graphite
2024 aluminum and graphite belong to fundamentally different material chemistries. 2024 aluminum is a metal, while graphite is a ceramic material. Therefore, their performance will be even more dissimilar than would be suggested by the difference in properties. There are 12 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (22, in this case) are not shown.
For each property being compared, the top bar is 2024 aluminum and the bottom bar is graphite.
Metric UnitsUS Customary Units
Mechanical Properties
| Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa | 71 | |
| 21 |
| Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa | 200 to 540 | |
| 18 |
Thermal Properties
| Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C | 200 | |
| 220 |
| Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K | 120 | |
| 6.0 |
| Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K | 23 | |
| 4.9 |
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
| Calomel Potential, mV | -600 | |
| 250 |
| Density, g/cm3 | 3.0 | |
| 1.8 |
Common Calculations
| Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points | 13 | |
| 6.7 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points | 46 | |
| 53 |
| Strength to Weight: Axial, points | 18 to 50 | |
| 2.9 |
| Strength to Weight: Bending, points | 25 to 49 | |
| 8.7 |
| Thermal Shock Resistance, points | 8.6 to 24 | |
| 12 |