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AZ91A Magnesium vs. Zamak 3

AZ91A magnesium belongs to the magnesium alloys classification, while Zamak 3 belongs to the zinc alloys. There are 32 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (5, 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 AZ91A magnesium and the bottom bar is Zamak 3.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness 63
83
Compressive (Crushing) Strength, MPa 160
410
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 46
86
Elongation at Break, % 5.0
11
Fatigue Strength, MPa 99
48
Poisson's Ratio 0.29
0.25
Shear Modulus, GPa 18
33
Shear Strength, MPa 140
210
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 240
280
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 160
210

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 360
120
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 130
95
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 600
390
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 470
380
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 990
410
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 73
110
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 26
27

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 10
27
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 52
38

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 12
11
Density, g/cm3 1.7
6.4
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 22
3.0
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 160
57
Embodied Water, L/kg 990
380

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 11
28
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 280
260
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 15
7.5
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 69
23
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 38
12
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 49
15
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 42
43
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 14
8.6

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 8.3 to 9.7
3.5 to 4.3
Cadmium (Cd), % 0
0 to 0.0050
Copper (Cu), % 0 to 0.1
0 to 0.25
Iron (Fe), % 0
0 to 0.1
Lead (Pb), % 0
0 to 0.0050
Magnesium (Mg), % 88.2 to 91.2
0.020 to 0.060
Manganese (Mn), % 0.13 to 0.5
0
Nickel (Ni), % 0 to 0.030
0 to 0.020
Silicon (Si), % 0 to 0.5
0 to 0.030
Tin (Sn), % 0
0 to 0.0030
Zinc (Zn), % 0.35 to 1.0
95.3 to 96.5