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Zamak 3 vs. Tungsten Carbide

Zamak 3 and tungsten carbide belong to fundamentally different material chemistries. Zamak 3 is a metal, while tungsten carbide is a ceramic material. Therefore, their performance will be even more dissimilar than would be suggested by the difference in properties. There are 17 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (21, 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 Zamak 3 and the bottom bar is tungsten carbide.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Compressive (Crushing) Strength, MPa 410
4780
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 86
630
Fracture Toughness, MPa-m1/2 12
12
Knoop Hardness 110
1670
Poisson's Ratio 0.25
0.24
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 280
350

Thermal Properties

Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 95
1000
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 410
280
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 110
85
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 27
5.4

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Density, g/cm3 6.4
15

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 7.5
24
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 23
20
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 12
6.6
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 15
7.5
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 43
21
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 8.6
7.2