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MDF vs. AISI 301L Stainless Steel

MDF and AISI 301L stainless steel belong to fundamentally different material chemistries. MDF is a polymeric material, while AISI 301L stainless steel 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 (20, 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 MDF and the bottom bar is AISI 301L stainless steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 4.0
200
Elongation at Break, % 0.5
22 to 50
Poisson's Ratio 0.25
0.28
Shear Modulus, GPa 2.5
77
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 18
620 to 1040

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 1700
480
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 0.3
15
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 12
16

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Density, g/cm3 0.75
7.8

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 3.0
14
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 71
25
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 6.7
22 to 37
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 20
21 to 29
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 0.24
4.1
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 27
14 to 24