SAE-AISI M4 Steel vs. N06985 Nickel
SAE-AISI M4 steel belongs to the iron alloys classification, while N06985 nickel belongs to the nickel alloys. They have a modest 30% of their average alloy composition in common, which, by itself, doesn't mean much. There are 21 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (10, in this case) are not shown.
For each property being compared, the top bar is SAE-AISI M4 steel and the bottom bar is N06985 nickel.
Metric UnitsUS Customary Units
Mechanical Properties
| Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa | 200 | |
| 210 |
| Poisson's Ratio | 0.29 | |
| 0.28 |
| Shear Modulus, GPa | 76 | |
| 80 |
| Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa | 770 to 2150 | |
| 690 |
Thermal Properties
| Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g | 260 | |
| 320 |
| Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C | 1610 | |
| 1350 |
| Melting Onset (Solidus), °C | 1560 | |
| 1260 |
| Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K | 440 | |
| 450 |
| Thermal Conductivity, W/m-K | 25 | |
| 10 |
| Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K | 12 | |
| 15 |
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
| Base Metal Price, % relative | 25 | |
| 55 |
| Density, g/cm3 | 8.3 | |
| 8.4 |
| Embodied Carbon, kg CO2/kg material | 14 | |
| 8.8 |
| Embodied Energy, MJ/kg | 210 | |
| 120 |
| Embodied Water, L/kg | 110 | |
| 270 |
Common Calculations
| Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points | 13 | |
| 14 |
| Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points | 23 | |
| 23 |
| Strength to Weight: Axial, points | 26 to 72 | |
| 23 |
| Strength to Weight: Bending, points | 23 to 45 | |
| 21 |
| Thermal Diffusivity, mm2/s | 6.9 | |
| 2.6 |
| Thermal Shock Resistance, points | 24 to 68 | |
| 16 |
Alloy Composition
| Carbon (C), % | 1.3 to 1.4 | |
| 0 to 0.015 |
| Chromium (Cr), % | 3.8 to 4.8 | |
| 21 to 23.5 |
| Cobalt (Co), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 5.0 |
| Copper (Cu), % | 0 to 0.25 | |
| 1.5 to 2.5 |
| Iron (Fe), % | 75.9 to 81.4 | |
| 18 to 21 |
| Manganese (Mn), % | 0.15 to 0.4 | |
| 0 to 1.0 |
| Molybdenum (Mo), % | 4.3 to 5.5 | |
| 6.0 to 8.0 |
| Nickel (Ni), % | 0 to 0.3 | |
| 35.9 to 53.5 |
| Niobium (Nb), % | 0 | |
| 0 to 0.5 |
| Phosphorus (P), % | 0 to 0.030 | |
| 0 to 0.040 |
| Silicon (Si), % | 0.2 to 0.45 | |
| 0 to 1.0 |
| Sulfur (S), % | 0 to 0.030 | |
| 0 to 0.030 |
| Tungsten (W), % | 5.3 to 6.5 | |
| 0 to 1.5 |
| Vanadium (V), % | 3.8 to 4.5 | |
| 0 |