ASTM A266 Carbon Steel
ASTM A266 carbon steel is a carbon (non-alloy) steel formulated for primary forming into wrought products.
The properties of ASTM A266 carbon steel include four common variations. This page shows summary ranges across all of them. For more specific values, follow the links immediately below. The graph bars on the material properties cards further below compare ASTM A266 carbon steel to: wrought carbon or non-alloy steels (top), all iron alloys (middle), and the entire database (bottom). A full bar means this is the highest value in the relevant set. A half-full bar means it's 50% of the highest, and so on.
Mechanical Properties
Brinell Hardness
150 to 180
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus
190 GPa 27 x 106 psi
Elongation at Break
21 to 26 %
Fatigue Strength
170 to 200 MPa 25 to 30 x 103 psi
Poisson's Ratio
0.29
Reduction in Area
34 to 43 %
Shear Modulus
73 GPa 11 x 106 psi
Shear Strength
320 to 380 MPa 47 to 55 x 103 psi
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS)
500 to 600 MPa 73 to 87 x 103 psi
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof)
230 to 290 MPa 33 to 42 x 103 psi
Thermal Properties
Latent Heat of Fusion
250 J/g
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical
400 °C 750 °F
Melting Completion (Liquidus)
1460 °C 2660 °F
Melting Onset (Solidus)
1420 °C 2590 °F
Specific Heat Capacity
470 J/kg-K 0.11 BTU/lb-°F
Thermal Conductivity
51 to 52 W/m-K 29 to 30 BTU/h-ft-°F
Thermal Expansion
12 µm/m-K
Electrical Properties
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume
7.1 % IACS
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific)
8.1 to 8.2 % IACS
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
Base Metal Price
1.8 % relative
Density
7.8 g/cm3 490 lb/ft3
Embodied Carbon
1.4 kg CO2/kg material
Embodied Energy
18 to 19 MJ/kg 7.9 to 8.0 x 103 BTU/lb
Embodied Water
46 to 47 L/kg 5.5 to 5.6 gal/lb
Common Calculations
Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work)
110 MJ/m3
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience)
140 to 230 kJ/m3
Stiffness to Weight: Axial
13 points
Stiffness to Weight: Bending
24 points
Strength to Weight: Axial
18 to 21 points
Strength to Weight: Bending
18 to 20 points
Thermal Diffusivity
14 mm2/s
Thermal Shock Resistance
16 to 19 points
Followup Questions
Further Reading
ASTM A266: Standard Specification for Carbon Steel Forgings for Pressure Vessel Components
Pressure Vessels: External Pressure Technology, 2nd ed., Carl T. F. Ross, 2011
Carbon Steel Handbook, D. Gandy, 2007
ASM Specialty Handbook: Carbon and Alloy Steels, J. R. Davis (editor), 1996
Ferrous Materials: Steel and Cast Iron, Hans Berns and Werner Theisen, 2008
Steels: Processing, Structure, and Performance, 2nd ed., George Krauss, 2015