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AM50A Magnesium vs. SAE-AISI 4340 Steel

AM50A magnesium belongs to the magnesium alloys classification, while SAE-AISI 4340 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 SAE-AISI 4340 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness 58
210 to 360
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 45
190
Elongation at Break, % 11
12 to 22
Fatigue Strength, MPa 70
330 to 740
Poisson's Ratio 0.29
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 17
73
Shear Strength, MPa 120
430 to 770
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 210
690 to 1280
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 120
470 to 1150

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 350
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 120
430
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
7.5
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 88
8.6

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 12
3.5
Density, g/cm3 1.7
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 23
1.7
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 160
22
Embodied Water, L/kg 990
53

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 19
79 to 170
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 150
590 to 3490
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 15
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 71
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 35
24 to 45
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 47
22 to 33
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 39
12
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 13
20 to 38

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 4.4 to 5.4
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.38 to 0.43
Chromium (Cr), % 0
0.7 to 0.9
Copper (Cu), % 0 to 0.010
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.0040
95.1 to 96.3
Magnesium (Mg), % 93.7 to 95.3
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0.26 to 0.6
0.6 to 0.8
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.2 to 0.3
Nickel (Ni), % 0 to 0.0020
1.7 to 2.0
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.035
Silicon (Si), % 0 to 0.1
0.15 to 0.35
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.040
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.22
0