MakeItFrom.com
Menu (ESC)

SAE-AISI 4340M Steel vs. ZE41A Magnesium

SAE-AISI 4340M steel belongs to the iron alloys classification, while ZE41A magnesium belongs to the magnesium alloys. There are 32 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (5, 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 SAE-AISI 4340M steel and the bottom bar is ZE41A magnesium.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness 710
63
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa 190
45
Elongation at Break, % 6.0
3.3
Fatigue Strength, MPa 690
98
Fracture Toughness, MPa-m1/2 60
16
Poisson's Ratio 0.29
0.29
Shear Modulus, GPa 72
18
Shear Strength, MPa 1360
150
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa 2340
210
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof), MPa 1240
140

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g 280
330
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C 430
150
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C 1440
640
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C 1400
540
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K 480
970
Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K 38
110
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K 13
27

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume, % IACS 7.8
27
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific), % IACS 9.1
130

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative 3.9
18
Density, g/cm3 7.8
1.9
Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material 1.9
24
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg 26
170
Embodied Water, L/kg 55
940

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work), MJ/m3 120
6.1
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience), kJ/m3 4120
220
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points 13
13
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points 25
63
Strength to Weight: Axial, points 84
31
Strength to Weight: Bending, points 51
41
Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s 10
59
Thermal Shock Resistance, points 70
12

Alloy Composition

Carbon (C), % 0.38 to 0.43
0
Chromium (Cr), % 0.7 to 1.0
0
Copper (Cu), % 0
0 to 0.1
Iron (Fe), % 93.3 to 94.8
0
Magnesium (Mg), % 0
91.7 to 95.4
Manganese (Mn), % 0.65 to 0.9
0 to 0.15
Molybdenum (Mo), % 0.35 to 0.45
0
Nickel (Ni), % 1.7 to 2.0
0 to 0.010
Phosphorus (P), % 0 to 0.012
0
Silicon (Si), % 1.5 to 1.8
0
Sulfur (S), % 0 to 0.012
0
Unspecified Rare Earths, % 0
0.75 to 1.8
Vanadium (V), % 0.050 to 0.1
0
Zinc (Zn), % 0
3.5 to 5.0
Zirconium (Zr), % 0
0.4 to 1.0
Residuals, % 0
0 to 0.3