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5657 Aluminum vs. SAE-AISI T6 Steel

5657 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys classification, while SAE-AISI T6 steel belongs to the iron alloys. There are 21 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (11, 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 5657 aluminum and the bottom bar is SAE-AISI T6 steel.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 68
210
Poisson's Ratio 0.33
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 26
81
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 150 to 200
880 to 2150

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 400
250
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 660
1830
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 640
1770
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 900
400
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 210
18
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 24
12

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 9.5
70
Density, g/cm3 2.7
9.5
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 8.4
11
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 160
170
Embodied Water, L/kg 1200
160

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 14
12
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 50
21
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 15 to 20
26 to 63
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 23 to 28
21 to 39
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 84
4.7
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 6.7 to 8.6
26 to 64

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 98.5 to 99.4
0
Carbon (C), % 0
0.75 to 0.85
Chromium (Cr), % 0
4.0 to 4.8
Cobalt (Co), % 0
11 to 13
Copper (Cu), % 0 to 0.1
0 to 0.25
Gallium (Ga), % 0 to 0.030
0
Iron (Fe), % 0 to 0.1
55.9 to 63.5
Magnesium (Mg), % 0.6 to 1.0
0
Manganese (Mn), % 0 to 0.030
0.2 to 0.4
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0
0.4 to 1.0
Nickel (Ni), % 0
0 to 0.3
Phosphorus (P), % 0
0 to 0.030
Silicon (Si), % 0 to 0.080
0.2 to 0.4
Sulfur (S), % 0
0 to 0.030
Tungsten (W), % 0
18.5 to 21
Vanadium (V), % 0 to 0.050
1.5 to 2.1
Zinc (Zn), % 0 to 0.050
0
Residuals, % 0 to 0.050
0