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1050A Aluminum vs. ACI-ASTM CA6NM Steel

1050A aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while ACI-ASTM CA6NM steel belongs to the iron alloys. There are 30 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (4, 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 1050A aluminum and the bottom bar is ACI-ASTM CA6NM steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness 20 to 45
250
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 68
200
Elongation at Break, % 1.1 to 33
17
Fatigue Strength, MPa 22 to 55
380
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.28
Shear Modulus, GPa 26
76
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 68 to 170
850
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 22 to 150
620

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 400
280
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 170
770
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 660
1450
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 650
1400
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 900
480
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 230
25
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 24
10

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 59
2.8
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 200
3.2

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 9.0
10
Density, g/cm3 2.7
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 8.2
2.5
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 150
34
Embodied Water, L/kg 1200
110

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 1.9 to 19
130
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 3.7 to 160
1000
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 14
14
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 50
25
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 6.9 to 18
30
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 14 to 25
26
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 94
6.7
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 3.0 to 7.6
31

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 99.5 to 100
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0 to 0.060
Chromium (Cr), % 0
11.5 to 14
Copper (Cu), % 0 to 0.050
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.4
78.4 to 84.6
Magnesium (Mg), % 0 to 0.050
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0 to 0.050
0 to 1.0
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.4 to 1.0
Nickel (Ni), % 0
3.5 to 4.5
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.040
Silicon (Si), % 0 to 0.25
0 to 1.0
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.030
Titanium (Ti), % 0 to 0.050
0
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.070
0