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6081 Aluminum vs. Grade VDSiCr Steel

6081 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while grade VDSiCr steel belongs to the iron alloys. There are 24 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (8, 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 6081 aluminum and the bottom bar is grade VDSiCr steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 69
190
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 26
80
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 310
1950

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 410
270
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 160
410
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 640
1440
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 610
1400
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 900
480
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 180
46
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 23
13

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 47
7.3
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 160
8.5

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 9.5
2.2
Density, g/cm3 2.7
7.7
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 8.3
1.5
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 150
20
Embodied Water, L/kg 1180
48

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 14
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 50
25
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 32
70
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 37
45
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 74
12
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 14
58

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 96.3 to 98.6
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.5 to 0.6
Chromium (Cr), % 0 to 0.1
0.5 to 0.8
Copper (Cu), % 0 to 0.1
0 to 0.060
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.5
96.6 to 97.8
Magnesium (Mg), % 0.6 to 1.0
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0.1 to 0.45
0.5 to 0.9
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.025
Silicon (Si), % 0.7 to 1.1
1.2 to 1.6
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.020
Titanium (Ti), % 0 to 0.15
0
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.2
0
Residuals, % 0 to 0.15
0