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2025 Aluminum vs. SAE-AISI A2 Steel

2025 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while SAE-AISI A2 steel belongs to the iron alloys. There are 23 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (9, 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 2025 aluminum and the bottom bar is SAE-AISI A2 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 72
190
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 27
74
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 400
710 to 2040

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 400
260
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 640
1450
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 520
1410
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 870
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 150
38
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 23
11

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 40
8.2
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 120
9.5

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 10
5.5
Density, g/cm3 3.0
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 7.9
2.7
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 150
38
Embodied Water, L/kg 1130
73

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 13
14
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 46
25
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 37
25 to 73
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 40
23 to 46
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 58
10
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 18
25 to 71

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 90.9 to 95.2
0
Carbon (C), % 0
1.0 to 1.1
Chromium (Cr), % 0 to 0.1
4.8 to 5.5
Copper (Cu), % 3.9 to 5.0
0 to 0.25
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 1.0
89.4 to 93.3
Magnesium (Mg), % 0 to 0.050
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0.4 to 1.2
0 to 1.0
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.9 to 1.4
Nickel (Ni), % 0
0 to 0.3
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.030
Silicon (Si), % 0.5 to 1.2
0 to 0.5
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.030
Titanium (Ti), % 0 to 0.15
0
Vanadium (V), % 0
0.15 to 0.5
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.25
0
Residuals, % 0 to 0.15
0