ASTM A572 Grade 42 HSLA Steel
ASTM A572 grade 42 is a type of ASTM A572 steel. Cited properties are appropriate for the as-fabricated (no temper or treatment) condition. It has the lowest strength and highest ductility compared to the other variants of ASTM A572 steel.
The graph bars on the material properties cards below compare ASTM A572 grade 42 to: wrought alloy steels in the same category (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
140
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus
190 GPa 27 x 106 psi
Elongation at Break
25 %
Fatigue Strength
240 MPa 35 x 103 psi
Poisson's Ratio
0.29
Shear Modulus
73 GPa 11 x 106 psi
Shear Strength
300 MPa 43 x 103 psi
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS)
470 MPa 68 x 103 psi
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof)
330 MPa 48 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 W/m-K 29 BTU/h-ft-°F
Thermal Expansion
13 µm/m-K
Electrical Properties
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume
7.2 % IACS
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific)
8.3 % IACS
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
Base Metal Price
2.0 % relative
Density
7.8 g/cm3 490 lb/ft3
Embodied Carbon
1.6 kg CO2/kg material
Embodied Energy
22 MJ/kg 9.3 x 103 BTU/lb
Embodied Water
47 L/kg 5.6 gal/lb
Common Calculations
Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work)
100 MJ/m3
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience)
290 kJ/m3
Stiffness to Weight: Axial
13 points
Stiffness to Weight: Bending
24 points
Strength to Weight: Axial
17 points
Strength to Weight: Bending
17 points
Thermal Diffusivity
14 mm2/s
Thermal Shock Resistance
14 points
Alloy Composition
| Fe | 97.1 to 99.5 | |
| Mn | 0.5 to 1.6 | |
| Si | 0 to 0.4 | |
| C | 0 to 0.21 | |
| V | 0 to 0.15 | |
| S | 0 to 0.050 | |
| Nb | 0 to 0.050 | |
| P | 0 to 0.040 | |
| Ti | 0 to 0.040 | |
| N | 0 to 0.015 |
All values are % weight. Ranges represent what is permitted under applicable standards.
Followup Questions
Similar Alloys
Further Reading
ASTM A572: Standard Specification for High-Strength Low-Alloy Columbium-Vanadium Structural Steel
Properties and Selection: Irons, Steels and High Performance Alloys, ASM Handbook vol. 1, ASM International, 1993
Manufacture and Uses of Alloy Steels, Henry D. Hibbard, 2005
Ferrous Materials: Steel and Cast Iron, Hans Berns and Werner Theisen, 2008
Steels: Processing, Structure, and Performance, 2nd ed., George Krauss, 2015