SAE-AISI 1021 Steel vs. N06985 Nickel
SAE-AISI 1021 steel belongs to the iron alloys classification, while N06985 nickel belongs to the nickel alloys. They have a modest 20% 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 (2, in this case) are not shown.
For each property being compared, the top bar is SAE-AISI 1021 steel and the bottom bar is N06985 nickel.
Metric UnitsUS Customary Units
Mechanical Properties
| Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa | 190 | |
| 210 |
| Elongation at Break, % | 17 to 27 | |
| 45 |
| Fatigue Strength, MPa | 190 to 300 | |
| 220 |
| Poisson's Ratio | 0.29 | |
| 0.28 |
| Shear Modulus, GPa | 73 | |
| 80 |
| Shear Strength, MPa | 310 to 320 | |
| 480 |
| Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa | 480 to 530 | |
| 690 |
| Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa | 260 to 450 | |
| 260 |
Thermal Properties
| Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g | 250 | |
| 320 |
| Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C | 400 | |
| 990 |
| Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C | 1460 | |
| 1350 |
| Melting Onset (Solidus), °C | 1420 | |
| 1260 |
| Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K | 470 | |
| 450 |
| Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K | 52 | |
| 10 |
| Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K | 12 | |
| 15 |
Electrical Properties
| Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS | 7.0 | |
| 1.5 |
| Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS | 8.0 | |
| 1.6 |
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
| Base Metal Price, % relative | 1.8 | |
| 55 |
| Density, g/cm3 | 7.9 | |
| 8.4 |
| Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material | 1.4 | |
| 8.8 |
| Embodied Energy, MJ/kg | 18 | |
| 120 |
| Embodied Water, L/kg | 46 | |
| 270 |
Common Calculations
| Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 | 84 to 110 | |
| 250 |
| Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 | 180 to 530 | |
| 160 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points | 13 | |
| 14 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points | 24 | |
| 23 |
| Strength to Weight: Axial, points | 17 to 19 | |
| 23 |
| Strength to Weight: Bending, points | 17 to 18 | |
| 21 |
| Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s | 14 | |
| 2.6 |
| Thermal Shock Resistance, points | 15 to 17 | |
| 16 |
Alloy Composition
| Carbon (C), % | 0.18 to 0.23 | |
| 0 to 0.015 |
| Chromium (Cr), % | 0 | |
| 21 to 23.5 |
| Cobalt (Co), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 5.0 |
| Copper (Cu), % | 0 | |
| 1.5 to 2.5 |
| Iron (Fe), % | 98.8 to 99.22 | |
| 18 to 21 |
| Manganese (Mn), % | 0.6 to 0.9 | |
| 0 to 1.0 |
| Molybdenum (Mo), % | 0 | |
| 6.0 to 8.0 |
| Nickel (Ni), % | 0 | |
| 35.9 to 53.5 |
| Niobium (Nb), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 0.5 |
| Phosphorus (P), % | 0 to 0.040 | |
| 0 to 0.040 |
| Silicon (Si), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 1.0 |
| Sulfur (S), % | 0 to 0.050 | |
| 0 to 0.030 |
| Tungsten (W), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 1.5 |