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238.0 Aluminum vs. ASTM A387 Grade 12 Steel

238.0 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while ASTM A387 grade 12 steel belongs to the iron alloys. There are 29 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (3, 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 238.0 aluminum and the bottom bar is ASTM A387 grade 12 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 76
190
Elongation at Break, % 1.5
25
Fatigue Strength, MPa 110
190 to 230
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 28
73
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 210
470 to 520
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 170
260 to 310

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 430
250
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 170
430
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 600
1470
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 510
1420
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 840
470
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 100
44
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 21
13

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 25
7.2
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 67
8.3

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 12
2.8
Density, g/cm3 3.4
7.8
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 7.4
1.6
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 140
21
Embodied Water, L/kg 1040
51

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 2.9
98 to 110
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 180
180 to 250
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 12
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 42
24
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 17
16 to 18
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 23
17 to 18
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 37
12
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 9.1
14 to 15

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 81.9 to 84.9
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.050 to 0.17
Chromium (Cr), % 0
0.8 to 1.2
Copper (Cu), % 9.5 to 10.5
0
Iron (Fe), % 1.0 to 1.5
97 to 98.2
Magnesium (Mg), % 0 to 0.25
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0
0.4 to 0.65
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.45 to 0.6
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.025
Silicon (Si), % 3.6 to 4.4
0.15 to 0.4
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.025
Zinc (Zn), % 1.0 to 1.5
0