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AISI 316 Stainless Steel vs. ASTM A321 Carbon Steel

Both AISI 316 stainless steel and ASTM A321 carbon steel are iron alloys. They have 68% of their average alloy composition in common. There are 32 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (4, in this case) are not shown.

For each property being compared, the top bar is AISI 316 stainless steel and the bottom bar is ASTM A321 carbon steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness 160 to 360
190
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 200
190
Elongation at Break, % 8.0 to 55
21
Fatigue Strength, MPa 210 to 430
270
Poisson's Ratio 0.28
0.29
Reduction in Area, % 80
39
Shear Modulus, GPa 78
73
Shear Strength, MPa 350 to 690
420
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 520 to 1180
670
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 230 to 850
390

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 290
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 590
400
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 1400
1460
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 1380
1420
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 470
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 15
51
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 16
12

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 2.3
7.1
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 2.6
8.1

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 19
1.8
Density, g/cm3 7.9
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 3.9
1.4
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 53
18
Embodied Water, L/kg 150
46

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 85 to 260
120
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 130 to 1820
400
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 14
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 25
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 18 to 41
24
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 18 to 31
22
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 4.1
14
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 11 to 26
21

Alloy Composition

Carbon (C), % 0 to 0.080
0 to 0.55
Chromium (Cr), % 16 to 18
0
Iron (Fe), % 62 to 72
98.1 to 99.25
Manganese (Mn), % 0 to 2.0
0.6 to 0.9
Molybdenum (Mo), % 2.0 to 3.0
0
Nickel (Ni), % 10 to 14
0
Nitrogen (N), % 0 to 0.1
0
Phosphorus (P), % 0 to 0.045
0 to 0.040
Silicon (Si), % 0 to 0.75
0.15 to 0.35
Sulfur (S), % 0 to 0.030
0 to 0.050