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3003 (AlMn1Cu, 3.0517, A93003) Aluminum

3003 aluminum is a 3000-series aluminum alloy: the main alloying addition is manganese, and it is formulated for primary forming into wrought products. 3003 is the Aluminum Association (AA) designation for this material. In European standards, it will be given as EN AW-3003. AlMn1Cu is the EN chemical designation. A93003 is the UNS number. Additionally, the AFNOR (French) designation is A-M1.

It has been in use since 1906, but has only received its standard designation in 1954. This material is well established: the Further Reading section below cites a number of published standards, and that list is not necessarily exhaustive.

The properties of 3003 aluminum include twelve common variations. This page shows summary ranges across all of them. For more specific values, follow the links immediately below. The graph bars on the material properties cards further below compare 3003 aluminum to: 3000-series alloys (top), all aluminum alloys (middle), and the entire database (bottom). A full bar means this is the highest value in the relevant set. A half-full bar means it's 50% of the highest, and so on.

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness

28 to 65

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus

70 GPa 10 x 106 psi

Elongation at Break

1.1 to 28 %

Fatigue Strength

39 to 90 MPa 5.7 to 13 x 103 psi

Poisson's Ratio

0.33

Shear Modulus

26 GPa 3.8 x 106 psi

Shear Strength

68 to 130 MPa 9.9 to 19 x 103 psi

Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS)

110 to 240 MPa 16 to 34 x 103 psi

Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof)

40 to 210 MPa 5.7 to 30 x 103 psi

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion

400 J/g

Maximum Temperature: Mechanical

180 °C 360 °F

Melting Completion (Liquidus)

650 °C 1210 °F

Melting Onset (Solidus)

640 °C 1190 °F

Specific Heat Capacity

900 J/kg-K 0.21 BTU/lb-°F

Thermal Conductivity

180 W/m-K 100 BTU/h-ft-°F

Thermal Expansion

23 µm/m-K

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume

44 % IACS

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific)

140 % IACS

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price

9.5 % relative

Calomel Potential

-740 mV

Density

2.8 g/cm3 170 lb/ft3

Embodied Carbon

8.1 kg CO2/kg material

Embodied Energy

150 MJ/kg 66 x 103 BTU/lb

Embodied Water

1180 L/kg 140 gal/lb

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work)

0.95 to 63 MJ/m3

Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience)

11 to 300 kJ/m3

Stiffness to Weight: Axial

14 points

Stiffness to Weight: Bending

50 points

Strength to Weight: Axial

11 to 24 points

Strength to Weight: Bending

18 to 30 points

Thermal Diffusivity

71 mm2/s

Thermal Shock Resistance

4.7 to 10 points

Alloy Composition

Among wrought aluminum alloys, the composition of 3003 aluminum is notable for containing a comparatively high amount of manganese (Mn). Manganese is used to improve strength without a proportional reduction in ductility. It also improves workability by controlling the grain structure of the alloy.

Aluminum (Al)Al 96.8 to 99
Manganese (Mn)Mn 1.0 to 1.5
Iron (Fe)Fe 0 to 0.7
Silicon (Si)Si 0 to 0.6
Copper (Cu)Cu 0.050 to 0.2
Zinc (Zn)Zn 0 to 0.1
Residualsres. 0 to 0.15

All values are % weight. Ranges represent what is permitted under applicable standards.

Followup Questions

Similar Alloys

Further Reading

ASTM B491: Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Extruded Round Tubes for General-Purpose Applications

ASTM B247: Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Die Forgings, Hand Forgings, and Rolled Ring Forgings

ASTM B483: Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Drawn Tube and Pipe for General Purpose Applications

ASTM B210: Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Drawn Seamless Tubes

ASTM B211: Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Bar, Rod, and Wire

ASTM B547: Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Formed and Arc-Welded Round Tube

ASTM B221: Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Extruded Bars, Rods, Wire, Profiles, and Tubes

Environmental Degradation of Advanced and Traditional Engineering Materials, Lloyd H. Hihara et al., 2014.

EN 754-2: Aluminium and aluminium alloys. Cold drawn rod/bar and tube. Mechanical properties

ASTM B209: Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Sheet and Plate