1200 (Al99.0, 3.0205, 1C, A91200) Aluminum
1200 aluminum is a 1000-series aluminum alloy: it is considered commercially pure, and is formulated for primary forming into wrought products. 1200 is the Aluminum Association (AA) designation for this material. In European standards, it will be given as EN AW-1200. 1C is the British Standard (BS) designation. A91200 is the UNS number. Additionally, the EN chemical designation is Al99,0. And the AFNOR (French) designation is A-4. Older literature may refer to this material as 1C, but this is now discouraged.
It originally received its standard designation in 1966. This material is well established: the Further Reading section below cites a number of published standards, and that list is not necessarily exhaustive.
The properties of 1200 aluminum include twelve common variations. This page shows summary ranges across all of them. For more specific values, follow the links immediately below. The graph bars on the material properties cards further below compare 1200 aluminum to: 1000-series alloys (top), all aluminum alloys (middle), and the entire database (bottom). A full bar means this is the highest value in the relevant set. A half-full bar means it's 50% of the highest, and so on.
Mechanical Properties
Brinell Hardness
23 to 48
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus
69 GPa 10 x 106 psi
Elongation at Break
1.1 to 28 %
Fatigue Strength
25 to 69 MPa 3.7 to 10 x 103 psi
Poisson's Ratio
0.33
Shear Modulus
26 GPa 3.7 x 106 psi
Shear Strength
54 to 100 MPa 7.8 to 15 x 103 psi
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS)
85 to 180 MPa 12 to 26 x 103 psi
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof)
28 to 160 MPa 4.1 to 23 x 103 psi
Thermal Properties
Latent Heat of Fusion
400 J/g
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical
170 °C 340 °F
Melting Completion (Liquidus)
660 °C 1210 °F
Melting Onset (Solidus)
650 °C 1210 °F
Specific Heat Capacity
900 J/kg-K 0.22 BTU/lb-°F
Thermal Conductivity
230 W/m-K 130 BTU/h-ft-°F
Thermal Expansion
23 µm/m-K
Electrical Properties
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume
58 % IACS
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific)
190 % IACS
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
Base Metal Price
9.0 % relative
Density
2.7 g/cm3 170 lb/ft3
Embodied Carbon
8.2 kg CO2/kg material
Embodied Energy
150 MJ/kg 66 x 103 BTU/lb
Embodied Water
1190 L/kg 140 gal/lb
Common Calculations
Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work)
2.0 to 19 MJ/m3
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience)
5.7 to 180 kJ/m3
Stiffness to Weight: Axial
14 points
Stiffness to Weight: Bending
50 points
Strength to Weight: Axial
8.7 to 19 points
Strength to Weight: Bending
16 to 26 points
Thermal Diffusivity
92 mm2/s
Thermal Shock Resistance
3.8 to 8.1 points
Alloy Composition
Among wrought aluminum alloys, the composition of 1200 aluminum is notable for containing comparatively high amounts of silicon (Si) and iron (Fe). Silicon is used to increase strength at the expense of ductility. It also lowers the melting temperature and raises the fluidity of the alloy. Most of the time, iron is an impurity in aluminum alloys. However, it may be added in quantity to improve strength (particularly at high temperatures) without much impact on electrical properties.
| Al | 99 to 100 | |
| Si | 0 to 1.0 | |
| Fe | 0 to 1.0 | |
| Zn | 0 to 0.1 | |
| Mn | 0 to 0.050 | |
| Ti | 0 to 0.050 | |
| Cu | 0 to 0.050 | |
| res. | 0 to 0.15 |
All values are % weight. Ranges represent what is permitted under applicable standards.
Followup Questions
Similar Alloys
Further Reading
ASTM B491: Standard Specification for Aluminum and Aluminum-Alloy Extruded Round Tubes for General-Purpose Applications
Handbook of Aluminum Bonding Technology and Data, J. D. Minford, 1993
EN 754-2: Aluminium and aluminium alloys. Cold drawn rod/bar and tube. Mechanical properties
Advanced Materials in Automotive Engineering, Jason Rowe (editor), 2012
EN 755-2: Aluminium and aluminium alloys. Extruded rod/bar, tube and profiles. Mechanical properties
EN 485-2: Aluminium and aluminium alloys. Sheet, strip and plate. Mechanical properties
Aluminum Standards and Data, Aluminum Association Inc., 2013
ASM Specialty Handbook: Aluminum and Aluminum Alloys, J. R. Davis (editor), 1993
ISO 6361-2: Wrought aluminium and aluminium alloys - Sheets, strips and plates - Part 2: Mechanical properties
EN 573-3: Aluminium and aluminium alloys. Chemical composition and form of wrought products. Chemical composition and form of products