5056 Aluminum vs. ZA-27
5056 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while ZA-27 belongs to the zinc alloys. They have a modest 27% of their average alloy composition in common, which, by itself, doesn't mean much. There are 30 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (7, in this case) are not shown.
For each property being compared, the top bar is 5056 aluminum and the bottom bar is ZA-27.
Metric UnitsUS Customary Units
Mechanical Properties
| Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa | 67 | |
| 78 |
| Elongation at Break, % | 4.9 to 31 | |
| 2.0 to 4.5 |
| Fatigue Strength, MPa | 140 to 200 | |
| 110 to 170 |
| Poisson's Ratio | 0.33 | |
| 0.27 |
| Shear Modulus, GPa | 25 | |
| 31 |
| Shear Strength, MPa | 170 to 240 | |
| 230 to 330 |
| Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa | 290 to 460 | |
| 400 to 430 |
| Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa | 150 to 410 | |
| 260 to 370 |
Thermal Properties
| Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g | 400 | |
| 130 |
| Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C | 190 | |
| 120 |
| Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C | 640 | |
| 480 |
| Melting Onset (Solidus), °C | 570 | |
| 380 |
| Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K | 910 | |
| 530 |
| Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K | 130 | |
| 130 |
| Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K | 24 | |
| 26 |
Electrical Properties
| Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS | 29 | |
| 30 |
| Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS | 99 | |
| 53 |
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
| Base Metal Price, % relative | 9.5 | |
| 11 |
| Density, g/cm3 | 2.7 | |
| 5.0 |
| Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material | 9.0 | |
| 4.2 |
| Embodied Energy, MJ/kg | 150 | |
| 80 |
| Embodied Water, L/kg | 1180 | |
| 570 |
Common Calculations
| Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 | 12 to 140 | |
| 8.1 to 18 |
| Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 | 170 to 1220 | |
| 420 to 890 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points | 14 | |
| 8.6 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points | 51 | |
| 28 |
| Strength to Weight: Axial, points | 30 to 48 | |
| 22 to 24 |
| Strength to Weight: Bending, points | 36 to 50 | |
| 24 to 25 |
| Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s | 53 | |
| 47 |
| Thermal Shock Resistance, points | 13 to 20 | |
| 14 to 15 |
Alloy Composition
| Aluminum (Al), % | 93 to 95.4 | |
| 25 to 28 |
| Cadmium (Cd), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 0.0060 |
| Chromium (Cr), % | 0.050 to 0.2 | |
| 0 |
| Copper (Cu), % | 0 to 0.1 | |
| 2.0 to 2.5 |
| Iron (Fe), % | 0 to 0.4 | |
| 0 to 0.1 |
| Lead (Pb), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 0.0060 |
| Magnesium (Mg), % | 4.5 to 5.6 | |
| 0.010 to 0.020 |
| Manganese (Mn), % | 0.050 to 0.2 | |
| 0 |
| Nickel (Ni), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 0.020 |
| Silicon (Si), % | 0 to 0.3 | |
| 0 to 0.080 |
| Tin (Sn), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 0.0030 |
| Zinc (Zn), % | 0 to 0.1 | |
| 69.3 to 73 |
| Residuals, % | 0 to 0.15 | |
| 0 |