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2036 Aluminum vs. ASTM A36 Carbon Steel

2036 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while ASTM A36 carbon steel belongs to the iron alloys. There are 30 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (1, 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 2036 aluminum and the bottom bar is ASTM A36 carbon steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 70
190
Elongation at Break, % 24
22
Fatigue Strength, MPa 130
200
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 26
73
Shear Strength, MPa 210
300
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 340
480
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 200
290

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 390
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 190
400
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 650
1460
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 560
1420
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 890
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 160
50
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 23
11

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 41
12
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 130
14

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 10
1.8
Density, g/cm3 2.9
7.9
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 8.1
1.4
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 150
18
Embodied Water, L/kg 1160
44

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 70
92
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 270
220
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 13
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 48
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 33
17
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 38
17
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 62
14
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 15
16

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 94.4 to 97.4
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0 to 0.26
Chromium (Cr), % 0 to 0.1
0
Copper (Cu), % 2.2 to 3.0
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.5
99.25 to 100
Magnesium (Mg), % 0.3 to 0.6
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0.1 to 0.4
0
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.040
Silicon (Si), % 0 to 0.5
0 to 0.4
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.050
Titanium (Ti), % 0 to 0.15
0
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.25
0
Residuals, % 0 to 0.15
0