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2011 Aluminum vs. ASTM A387 Grade 2 Steel

2011 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while ASTM A387 grade 2 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 2011 aluminum and the bottom bar is ASTM A387 grade 2 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 71
190
Elongation at Break, % 8.5 to 18
25
Fatigue Strength, MPa 74 to 120
190 to 250
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 27
73
Shear Strength, MPa 190 to 250
300 to 350
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 310 to 420
470 to 550
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 140 to 310
260 to 350

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 390
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 190
420
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 640
1470
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 540
1420
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 870
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 140 to 170
45
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 23
13

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 35 to 45
7.2
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 100 to 130
8.3

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 11
2.6
Density, g/cm3 3.1
7.9
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 7.9
1.6
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 150
20
Embodied Water, L/kg 1150
50

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 29 to 52
98 to 120
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 140 to 680
180 to 320
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 13
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 44
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 27 to 37
16 to 20
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 32 to 40
17 to 19
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 51 to 64
12
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 14 to 19
14 to 16

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 91.3 to 94.6
0
Bismuth (Bi), % 0.2 to 0.6
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.050 to 0.21
Chromium (Cr), % 0
0.5 to 0.8
Copper (Cu), % 5.0 to 6.0
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.7
97.1 to 98.3
Lead (Pb), % 0.2 to 0.6
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0
0.55 to 0.8
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.45 to 0.6
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.025
Silicon (Si), % 0 to 0.4
0.15 to 0.4
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.025
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.3
0
Residuals, % 0 to 0.15
0