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7129 Aluminum vs. ASTM A387 Grade 2 Steel

7129 Aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while ASTM A387 grade 2 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 7129 Aluminum and the bottom bar is ASTM A387 grade 2 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 69
190
Elongation at Break, % 9.0 to 9.1
25
Fatigue Strength, MPa 150 to 190
190 to 250
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 26
73
Shear Strength, MPa 250 to 260
300 to 350
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 430
470 to 550
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 380 to 390
260 to 350

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 380
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 180
420
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 630
1470
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 510
1420
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 880
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 150
45
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 24
13

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 40
7.2
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 120
8.3

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 9.5
2.6
Density, g/cm3 2.9
7.9
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 8.3
1.6
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 150
20
Embodied Water, L/kg 1150
50

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 37 to 38
98 to 120
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 1050 to 1090
180 to 320
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 13
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 47
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 41
16 to 20
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 43 to 44
17 to 19
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 58
12
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 19
14 to 16

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 91 to 94
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.050 to 0.21
Chromium (Cr), % 0 to 0.1
0.5 to 0.8
Copper (Cu), % 0.5 to 0.9
0
Gallium (Ga), % 0 to 0.030
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.3
97.1 to 98.3
Magnesium (Mg), % 1.3 to 2.0
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0 to 0.1
0.55 to 0.8
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.45 to 0.6
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.025
Silicon (Si), % 0 to 0.15
0.15 to 0.4
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.025
Titanium (Ti), % 0 to 0.050
0
Vanadium (V), % 0 to 0.050
0
Zinc (Zn), % 4.2 to 5.2
0
Residuals, % 0 to 0.15
0