5251 Aluminum vs. ASTM A210 Steel
5251 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while ASTM A210 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 5251 aluminum and the bottom bar is ASTM A210 steel.
Metric UnitsUS Customary Units
Mechanical Properties
| Brinell Hardness | 44 to 79 | |
| 140 to 160 |
| Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa | 68 | |
| 190 |
| Elongation at Break, % | 2.0 to 19 | |
| 34 |
| Fatigue Strength, MPa | 59 to 110 | |
| 230 to 250 |
| Poisson's Ratio | 0.33 | |
| 0.29 |
| Shear Modulus, GPa | 26 | |
| 73 |
| Shear Strength, MPa | 110 to 160 | |
| 320 to 360 |
| Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa | 180 to 280 | |
| 470 to 540 |
| Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa | 67 to 250 | |
| 290 to 310 |
Thermal Properties
| Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g | 400 | |
| 250 |
| Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C | 180 | |
| 400 |
| Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C | 650 | |
| 1460 to 1470 |
| Melting Onset (Solidus), °C | 610 | |
| 1420 |
| Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K | 900 | |
| 470 |
| Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K | 150 | |
| 52 to 53 |
| Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K | 24 | |
| 12 |
Electrical Properties
| Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS | 37 | |
| 7.0 |
| Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS | 120 | |
| 8.0 to 8.1 |
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
| Base Metal Price, % relative | 9.5 | |
| 1.8 |
| Density, g/cm3 | 2.7 | |
| 7.9 |
| Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material | 8.5 | |
| 1.4 |
| Embodied Energy, MJ/kg | 150 | |
| 18 |
| Embodied Water, L/kg | 1180 | |
| 45 to 46 |
Common Calculations
| Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 | 5.4 to 27 | |
| 140 to 160 |
| Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 | 33 to 450 | |
| 230 to 250 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points | 14 | |
| 13 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points | 50 | |
| 24 |
| Strength to Weight: Axial, points | 18 to 29 | |
| 17 to 19 |
| Strength to Weight: Bending, points | 26 to 35 | |
| 17 to 19 |
| Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s | 61 | |
| 14 |
| Thermal Shock Resistance, points | 7.9 to 13 | |
| 15 to 17 |