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518.0 Aluminum vs. SAE-AISI A2 Steel

518.0 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while SAE-AISI A2 steel belongs to the iron alloys. There are 23 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (9, 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 518.0 aluminum and the bottom bar is SAE-AISI A2 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 67
190
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 25
74
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 310
710 to 2040

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 390
260
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 620
1450
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 560
1410
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 900
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 98
38
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 24
11

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 24
8.2
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 81
9.5

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 9.5
5.5
Density, g/cm3 2.7
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 9.4
2.7
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 150
38
Embodied Water, L/kg 1160
73

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 14
14
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 51
25
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 32
25 to 73
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 38
23 to 46
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 40
10
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 14
25 to 71

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 88.1 to 92.5
0
Carbon (C), % 0
1.0 to 1.1
Chromium (Cr), % 0
4.8 to 5.5
Copper (Cu), % 0 to 0.25
0 to 0.25
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 1.8
89.4 to 93.3
Magnesium (Mg), % 7.5 to 8.5
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0 to 0.35
0 to 1.0
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.9 to 1.4
Nickel (Ni), % 0 to 0.15
0 to 0.3
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.030
Silicon (Si), % 0 to 0.35
0 to 0.5
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.030
Tin (Sn), % 0 to 0.15
0
Vanadium (V), % 0
0.15 to 0.5
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.15
0
Residuals, % 0 to 0.25
0