MakeItFrom.com
Menu (ESC)

PMMA vs. SAE-AISI 4150 Steel

PMMA and SAE-AISI 4150 steel belong to fundamentally different material chemistries. PMMA is a polymeric material, while SAE-AISI 4150 steel is a metal. Therefore, their performance will be even more dissimilar than would be suggested by the difference in properties. There are 15 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (29, 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 PMMA and the bottom bar is SAE-AISI 4150 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 3.2
190
Elongation at Break, % 4.0
12 to 20
Shear Modulus, GPa 1.7
73
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 71
660 to 1310

Thermal Properties

Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 180
1420
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 1260
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 0.19
42
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 76
13

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Density, g/cm3 1.2
7.8

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 1.5
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 42
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 17
24 to 47
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 32
22 to 34
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 0.13
11
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 21
19 to 39