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ASTM A372 Grade H Steel vs. 2018 Aluminum

ASTM A372 grade H steel belongs to the iron alloys classification, while 2018 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys. 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 ASTM A372 grade H steel and the bottom bar is 2018 aluminum.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness 200 to 280
120
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 190
73
Elongation at Break, % 20 to 22
9.6
Fatigue Strength, MPa 310 to 380
120
Poisson's Ratio 0.29
0.33
Shear Modulus, GPa 73
27
Shear Strength, MPa 410 to 570
270
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 650 to 910
420
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 430 to 550
310

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 250
390
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 410
220
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 1460
640
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 1420
510
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 470
870
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 45
150
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 13
22

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 7.2
40
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 8.3
120

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 2.3
11
Density, g/cm3 7.8
3.1
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 1.5
8.1
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 20
150
Embodied Water, L/kg 49
1130

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 130 to 160
37
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 500 to 810
670
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 13
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 24
45
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 23 to 32
38
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 21 to 27
41
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 12
57
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 19 to 27
19

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), % 0
89.7 to 94.4
Carbon (C), % 0.3 to 0.4
0
Chromium (Cr), % 0.4 to 0.65
0 to 0.1
Copper (Cu), % 0
3.5 to 4.5
Iron (Fe), % 97.3 to 98.3
0 to 1.0
Magnesium (Mg), % 0
0.45 to 0.9
Manganese (Mn), % 0.75 to 1.1
0 to 0.2
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0.15 to 0.25
0
Nickel (Ni), % 0
1.7 to 2.3
Phosphorus (P), % 0 to 0.015
0
Silicon (Si), % 0.15 to 0.35
0 to 0.9
Sulfur (S), % 0 to 0.010
0
Zinc (Zn), % 0
0 to 0.25
Residuals, % 0
0 to 0.15