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AS41A Magnesium vs. ASTM A387 Grade 12 Steel

AS41A magnesium belongs to the magnesium alloys classification, while ASTM A387 grade 12 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 AS41A magnesium and the bottom bar is ASTM A387 grade 12 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 45
190
Elongation at Break, % 11
25
Fatigue Strength, MPa 100
190 to 230
Poisson's Ratio 0.29
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 17
73
Shear Strength, MPa 130
300 to 330
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 230
470 to 520
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 140
260 to 310

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 370
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 110
430
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 620
1470
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 570
1420
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 1000
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 68
44
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 26
13

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 17
7.2
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 92
8.3

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 12
2.8
Density, g/cm3 1.6
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 23
1.6
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 160
21
Embodied Water, L/kg 980
51

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 21
98 to 110
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 220
180 to 250
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 15
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 72
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 38
16 to 18
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 50
17 to 18
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 41
12
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 14
14 to 15

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 3.5 to 5.0
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.050 to 0.17
Chromium (Cr), % 0
0.8 to 1.2
Copper (Cu), % 0 to 0.060
0
Iron (Fe), % 0
97 to 98.2
Magnesium (Mg), % 92.8 to 95.8
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0.2 to 0.5
0.4 to 0.65
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.45 to 0.6
Nickel (Ni), % 0 to 0.030
0
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.025
Silicon (Si), % 0.5 to 1.5
0.15 to 0.4
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.025
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.12
0