Borosilicate Glass vs. 2018 Aluminum
Borosilicate glass and 2018 aluminum belong to fundamentally different material chemistries. Borosilicate glass is a ceramic material, while 2018 aluminum is a metal. Therefore, their performance will be even more dissimilar than would be suggested by the difference in properties. There are 15 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (29, in this case) are not shown.
For each property being compared, the top bar is borosilicate glass and the bottom bar is 2018 aluminum.
Metric UnitsUS Customary Units
Mechanical Properties
| Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa | 67 to 80 | |
| 73 |
| Poisson's Ratio | 0.21 | |
| 0.33 |
| Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa | 280 | |
| 420 |
Thermal Properties
| Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C | 360 | |
| 220 |
| Melting Onset (Solidus), °C | 560 | |
| 510 |
| Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K | 830 | |
| 870 |
| Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K | 1.2 | |
| 150 |
| Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K | 3.3 to 5.1 | |
| 22 |
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
| Density, g/cm3 | 2.2 to 2.6 | |
| 3.1 |
Common Calculations
| Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points | 15 to 17 | |
| 13 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points | 55 to 61 | |
| 45 |
| Strength to Weight: Axial, points | 30 to 35 | |
| 38 |
| Strength to Weight: Bending, points | 36 to 43 | |
| 41 |
| Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s | 0.54 to 0.63 | |
| 57 |
| Thermal Shock Resistance, points | 50 to 91 | |
| 19 |