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AM50A Magnesium vs. ASTM A372 Grade F Steel

AM50A magnesium belongs to the magnesium alloys classification, while ASTM A372 grade F 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 AM50A magnesium and the bottom bar is ASTM A372 grade F steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness 58
200 to 280
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 45
190
Elongation at Break, % 11
20 to 22
Fatigue Strength, MPa 70
310 to 380
Poisson's Ratio 0.29
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 17
73
Shear Strength, MPa 120
410 to 570
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 210
650 to 910
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 120
430 to 550

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 350
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 120
420
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 620
1460
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 570
1420
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 1000
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 65
44
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 26
13

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 16
7.3
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 88
8.4

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 12
2.4
Density, g/cm3 1.7
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 23
1.5
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 160
20
Embodied Water, L/kg 990
51

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 19
130 to 160
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 150
500 to 810
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 15
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 71
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 35
23 to 32
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 47
21 to 27
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 39
12
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 13
19 to 27

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 4.4 to 5.4
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.3 to 0.4
Chromium (Cr), % 0
0.8 to 1.2
Copper (Cu), % 0 to 0.010
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.0040
96.8 to 97.9
Magnesium (Mg), % 93.7 to 95.3
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0.26 to 0.6
0.7 to 1.0
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.15 to 0.25
Nickel (Ni), % 0 to 0.0020
0
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.015
Silicon (Si), % 0 to 0.1
0.15 to 0.35
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.010
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.22
0