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4115 Aluminum vs. SAE-AISI 4161 Steel

4115 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while SAE-AISI 4161 steel belongs to the iron alloys. 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 4115 aluminum and the bottom bar is SAE-AISI 4161 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness 38 to 68
200
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 70
190
Elongation at Break, % 1.1 to 11
20
Fatigue Strength, MPa 39 to 76
290
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 26
73
Shear Strength, MPa 71 to 130
420
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 120 to 220
680
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 39 to 190
410

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 420
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 160
420
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 640
1460
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 590
1410
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 900
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 160
43
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 23
12

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 41
7.3
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 140
8.4

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 9.5
2.5
Density, g/cm3 2.7
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 8.1
1.5
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 150
20
Embodied Water, L/kg 1160
50

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 2.1 to 10
120
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 11 to 270
460
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 14
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 50
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 12 to 23
24
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 20 to 30
22
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 66
12
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 5.2 to 9.9
22

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 94.6 to 97.4
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.56 to 0.64
Chromium (Cr), % 0
0.7 to 0.9
Copper (Cu), % 0.1 to 0.5
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.7
96.7 to 97.6
Magnesium (Mg), % 0.1 to 0.5
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0.6 to 1.2
0.75 to 1.0
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.25 to 0.35
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.035
Silicon (Si), % 1.8 to 2.2
0.15 to 0.35
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.040
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.2
0
Residuals, % 0 to 0.15
0