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6065 Aluminum vs. ASTM A387 Grade 21 Steel

6065 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while ASTM A387 grade 21 steel belongs to the iron alloys. There are 30 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (2, 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 6065 aluminum and the bottom bar is ASTM A387 grade 21 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 68
190
Elongation at Break, % 4.5 to 11
21
Fatigue Strength, MPa 96 to 110
160 to 250
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 26
74
Shear Strength, MPa 190 to 230
310 to 370
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 310 to 400
500 to 590
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 270 to 380
230 to 350

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 400
260
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 180
480
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 640
1470
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 590
1430
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 890
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 170
41
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 23
13

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 43
7.6
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 140
8.8

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 11
4.1
Density, g/cm3 2.8
7.9
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 8.4
1.8
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 150
23
Embodied Water, L/kg 1200
62

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 17 to 34
84 to 110
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 540 to 1040
140 to 320
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 14
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 49
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 31 to 40
18 to 21
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 36 to 43
18 to 20
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 67
11
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 14 to 18
14 to 17

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 94.4 to 98.2
0
Bismuth (Bi), % 0.5 to 1.5
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.050 to 0.15
Chromium (Cr), % 0 to 0.15
2.8 to 3.3
Copper (Cu), % 0.15 to 0.4
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.7
94.4 to 96
Lead (Pb), % 0 to 0.050
0
Magnesium (Mg), % 0.8 to 1.2
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0 to 0.15
0.3 to 0.6
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.9 to 1.1
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.025
Silicon (Si), % 0.4 to 0.8
0 to 0.5
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.025
Titanium (Ti), % 0 to 0.1
0
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.25
0
Zirconium (Zr), % 0 to 0.15
0
Residuals, % 0 to 0.15
0