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2025 Aluminum vs. SAE-AISI 5015 Steel

2025 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while SAE-AISI 5015 steel belongs to the iron alloys. 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 2025 aluminum and the bottom bar is SAE-AISI 5015 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness 110
130
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 72
190
Elongation at Break, % 15
27
Fatigue Strength, MPa 130
170
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 27
73
Shear Strength, MPa 240
280
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 400
430
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 260
220

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 400
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 190
410
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 640
1460
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 520
1420
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 870
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 150
52
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 23
13

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 40
7.0
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 120
8.1

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 10
1.9
Density, g/cm3 3.0
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 7.9
1.4
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 150
19
Embodied Water, L/kg 1130
47

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 55
97
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 450
130
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 13
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 46
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 37
15
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 40
16
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 58
14
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 18
13

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 90.9 to 95.2
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.12 to 0.17
Chromium (Cr), % 0 to 0.1
0.3 to 0.5
Copper (Cu), % 3.9 to 5.0
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 1.0
98.4 to 99.13
Magnesium (Mg), % 0 to 0.050
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0.4 to 1.2
0.3 to 0.5
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.035
Silicon (Si), % 0.5 to 1.2
0.15 to 0.35
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.040
Titanium (Ti), % 0 to 0.15
0
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.25
0
Residuals, % 0 to 0.15
0