5251 Aluminum vs. ISO-WD21150 Magnesium
5251 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while ISO-WD21150 magnesium belongs to the magnesium alloys. There are 29 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (2, in this case) are not shown.
For each property being compared, the top bar is 5251 aluminum and the bottom bar is ISO-WD21150 magnesium.
Metric UnitsUS Customary Units
Mechanical Properties
| Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa | 68 | |
| 45 |
| Elongation at Break, % | 2.0 to 19 | |
| 5.7 to 11 |
| Poisson's Ratio | 0.33 | |
| 0.29 |
| Shear Modulus, GPa | 26 | |
| 17 |
| Shear Strength, MPa | 110 to 160 | |
| 150 to 170 |
| Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa | 180 to 280 | |
| 240 to 290 |
| Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa | 67 to 250 | |
| 120 to 200 |
Thermal Properties
| Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g | 400 | |
| 350 |
| Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C | 180 | |
| 110 |
| Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C | 650 | |
| 600 |
| Melting Onset (Solidus), °C | 610 | |
| 550 |
| Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K | 900 | |
| 990 |
| Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K | 150 | |
| 100 |
| Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K | 24 | |
| 27 |
Electrical Properties
| Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS | 37 | |
| 19 |
| Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS | 120 | |
| 100 |
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
| Base Metal Price, % relative | 9.5 | |
| 12 |
| Density, g/cm3 | 2.7 | |
| 1.7 |
| Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material | 8.5 | |
| 23 |
| Embodied Energy, MJ/kg | 150 | |
| 160 |
| Embodied Water, L/kg | 1180 | |
| 980 |
Common Calculations
| Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 | 5.4 to 27 | |
| 15 to 24 |
| Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 | 33 to 450 | |
| 160 to 460 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points | 14 | |
| 15 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points | 50 | |
| 70 |
| Strength to Weight: Axial, points | 18 to 29 | |
| 40 to 48 |
| Strength to Weight: Bending, points | 26 to 35 | |
| 52 to 58 |
| Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s | 61 | |
| 60 |
| Thermal Shock Resistance, points | 7.9 to 13 | |
| 15 to 17 |
Alloy Composition
| Aluminum (Al), % | 95.5 to 98.2 | |
| 2.4 to 3.6 |
| Chromium (Cr), % | 0 to 0.15 | |
| 0 |
| Copper (Cu), % | 0 to 0.15 | |
| 0 to 0.050 |
| Iron (Fe), % | 0 to 0.5 | |
| 0 to 0.0050 |
| Magnesium (Mg), % | 1.7 to 2.4 | |
| 94 to 97 |
| Manganese (Mn), % | 0.1 to 0.5 | |
| 0.15 to 0.4 |
| Nickel (Ni), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 0.0050 |
| Silicon (Si), % | 0 to 0.4 | |
| 0 to 0.1 |
| Titanium (Ti), % | 0 to 0.15 | |
| 0 |
| Zinc (Zn), % | 0 to 0.15 | |
| 0.5 to 1.5 |
| Residuals, % | 0 | |
| 0 to 0.3 |