MakeItFrom.com
Menu (ESC)

WE43B Magnesium vs. ASTM A227 Spring Steel

WE43B magnesium belongs to the magnesium alloys classification, while ASTM A227 spring steel belongs to the iron alloys. There are 29 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (3, 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 WE43B magnesium and the bottom bar is ASTM A227 spring steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 44
190
Elongation at Break, % 2.2
12
Fatigue Strength, MPa 110
900 to 1160
Poisson's Ratio 0.29
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 17
72
Shear Strength, MPa 140
1030 to 1330
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 250
1720 to 2220
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 200
1430 to 1850

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 330
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 180
400
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 640
1450
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 550
1410
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 960
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 51
52
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 27
12

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 11
7.2
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 53
8.3

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 34
1.8
Density, g/cm3 1.9
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 28
1.4
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 250
19
Embodied Water, L/kg 910
46

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 5.2
200 to 260
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 13
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 61
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 36
61 to 79
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 46
41 to 48
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 28
14
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 15
55 to 71

Alloy Composition

Carbon (C), % 0
0.45 to 0.85
Copper (Cu), % 0 to 0.020
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.010
97.4 to 99.1
Lithium (Li), % 0 to 0.2
0
Magnesium (Mg), % 89.8 to 93.5
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0 to 0.030
0.3 to 1.3
Nickel (Ni), % 0 to 0.0050
0
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.040
Silicon (Si), % 0
0.15 to 0.35
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.050
Unspecified Rare Earths, % 2.4 to 4.4
0
Yttrium (Y), % 3.7 to 4.3
0
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.2
0
Zirconium (Zr), % 0.4 to 1.0
0