C15100 Copper vs. 515.0 Aluminum

C15100 copper belongs to the copper alloys classification, while 515.0 aluminum belongs to the aluminum alloys. There are 22 material properties with values for both materials. Properties with values for just one material (10, 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 C15100 copper and the bottom bar is 515.0 aluminum.

Metric UnitsUS Customary Units

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa		120
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus, GPa		70

Elongation at Break, %		2.0 to 36
Elongation at Break, %		10

Poisson's Ratio		0.34
Poisson's Ratio		0.33

Shear Modulus, GPa		43
Shear Modulus, GPa		26

Shear Strength, MPa		170 to 270
Shear Strength, MPa		190

Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa		260 to 470
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS), MPa		280

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g		210
Latent Heat of Fusion, J/g		470

Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C		200
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical, °C		170

Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C		1100
Melting Completion (Liquidus), °C		620

Melting Onset (Solidus), °C		1030
Melting Onset (Solidus), °C		620

Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K		390
Specific Heat Capacity, J/kg-K		900

Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K		17
Thermal Expansion, µm/m-K		23

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price, % relative		31
Base Metal Price, % relative		9.5

Density, g/cm³		9.0
Density, g/cm³		2.6

Embodied Carbon, kg CO₂/kg material		2.7
Embodied Carbon, kg CO₂/kg material		8.4

Embodied Energy, MJ/kg		43
Embodied Energy, MJ/kg		150

Embodied Water, L/kg		310
Embodied Water, L/kg		1120

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points		7.2
Stiffness to Weight: Axial, points		15

Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points		18
Stiffness to Weight: Bending, points		52

Strength to Weight: Axial, points		8.1 to 15
Strength to Weight: Axial, points		30

Strength to Weight: Bending, points		10 to 15
Strength to Weight: Bending, points		36

Thermal Shock Resistance, points		9.3 to 17
Thermal Shock Resistance, points		13

Alloy Composition

Aluminum (Al), %		0
Aluminum (Al), %		93.6 to 96.6

Copper (Cu), %		99.8 to 99.95
Copper (Cu), %		0 to 0.2

Iron (Fe), %		0
Iron (Fe), %		0 to 1.3

Magnesium (Mg), %		0
Magnesium (Mg), %		2.5 to 4.0

Manganese (Mn), %		0
Manganese (Mn), %		0.4 to 0.6

Silicon (Si), %		0
Silicon (Si), %		0.5 to 10

Zinc (Zn), %		0
Zinc (Zn), %		0 to 0.1

Zirconium (Zr), %		0.050 to 0.15
Zirconium (Zr), %		0

Residuals, %		0
Residuals, %		0 to 0.15