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Carbon-carbon vs. SAE-AISI M42 Steel

Carbon-carbon and SAE-AISI M42 steel belong to fundamentally different material chemistries. Carbon-carbon is a ceramic material, while SAE-AISI M42 steel is a metal. Therefore, their performance will be even more dissimilar than would be suggested by the difference in properties. There are 14 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (14, 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 carbon-carbon and the bottom bar is SAE-AISI M42 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 95
200
Poisson's Ratio 0.32
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 36
78
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 19
810 to 2310

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 760
450
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 40
20
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 4.0
12

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Density, g/cm3 1.7
8.2

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 31
14
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 89
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 3.0
28 to 79
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 9.1
24 to 48
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 31
5.4
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 3.5
25 to 71