Ductile Cast Iron vs. ASTM A36 Carbon Steel
Both ductile cast iron and ASTM A36 carbon steel are iron alloys. They have a moderately high 95% of their average alloy composition in common. There are 30 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 ductile cast iron and the bottom bar is ASTM A36 carbon steel.
Metric UnitsUS Customary Units
Mechanical Properties
Brinell Hardness | 160 to 310 | |
140 |
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa | 170 to 180 | |
190 |
Elongation at Break, % | 2.1 to 20 | |
22 |
Poisson's Ratio | 0.28 to 0.31 | |
0.29 |
Shear Modulus, GPa | 64 to 70 | |
73 |
Shear Strength, MPa | 420 to 800 | |
300 |
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa | 460 to 920 | |
480 |
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa | 310 to 670 | |
290 |
Thermal Properties
Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g | 270 | |
250 |
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C | 290 | |
400 |
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C | 1160 | |
1460 |
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C | 1120 | |
1420 |
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K | 490 | |
470 |
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K | 31 to 36 | |
50 |
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K | 11 | |
11 |
Electrical Properties
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS | 7.4 | |
12 |
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS | 8.8 to 9.4 | |
14 |
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
Base Metal Price, % relative | 1.9 | |
1.8 |
Density, g/cm3 | 7.1 to 7.5 | |
7.9 |
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material | 1.5 | |
1.4 |
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg | 21 | |
18 |
Embodied Water, L/kg | 43 | |
44 |
Common Calculations
Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 | 17 to 80 | |
92 |
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 | 280 to 1330 | |
220 |
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points | 12 to 14 | |
13 |
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points | 24 to 26 | |
24 |
Strength to Weight: Axial, points | 17 to 35 | |
17 |
Strength to Weight: Bending, points | 18 to 29 | |
17 |
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s | 8.9 to 10 | |
14 |
Thermal Shock Resistance, points | 17 to 35 | |
16 |
Alloy Composition
Carbon (C), % | 3.0 to 3.5 | |
0 to 0.26 |
Iron (Fe), % | 93.7 to 95.5 | |
99.25 to 100 |
Phosphorus (P), % | 0 to 0.080 | |
0 to 0.040 |
Silicon (Si), % | 1.5 to 2.8 | |
0 to 0.4 |
Sulfur (S), % | 0 | |
0 to 0.050 |