SAE-AISI 52100 (G52986) Chromium Steel
SAE-AISI 52100 steel is an alloy steel formulated for primary forming into wrought products. 52100 is the designation in both the SAE and AISI systems for this material. G52986 is the UNS number.
The properties of SAE-AISI 52100 steel include three 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 SAE-AISI 52100 steel to: SAE-AISI wrought 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
180 to 210
Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus
190 GPa 27 x 106 psi
Elongation at Break
10 to 20 %
Fatigue Strength
250 to 340 MPa 37 to 50 x 103 psi
Poisson's Ratio
0.29
Shear Modulus
72 GPa 10 x 106 psi
Shear Strength
370 to 420 MPa 54 to 61 x 103 psi
Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS)
590 to 2010 MPa 86 to 290 x 103 psi
Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof)
360 to 560 MPa 53 to 81 x 103 psi
Thermal Properties
Latent Heat of Fusion
250 J/g
Maximum Temperature: Mechanical
430 °C 810 °F
Melting Completion (Liquidus)
1450 °C 2640 °F
Melting Onset (Solidus)
1410 °C 2570 °F
Specific Heat Capacity
470 J/kg-K 0.11 BTU/lb-°F
Thermal Conductivity
47 W/m-K 27 BTU/h-ft-°F
Thermal Expansion
12 to 13 µm/m-K
Electrical Properties
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume
7.3 % IACS
Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific)
8.5 % IACS
Otherwise Unclassified Properties
Base Metal Price
2.4 % relative
Density
7.8 g/cm3 490 lb/ft3
Embodied Carbon
1.5 kg CO2/kg material
Embodied Energy
20 MJ/kg 8.5 x 103 BTU/lb
Embodied Water
51 L/kg 6.1 gal/lb
Common Calculations
Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work)
54 to 310 MJ/m3
Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience)
350 to 840 kJ/m3
Stiffness to Weight: Axial
13 points
Stiffness to Weight: Bending
24 points
Strength to Weight: Axial
21 to 72 points
Strength to Weight: Bending
20 to 45 points
Thermal Diffusivity
13 mm2/s
Thermal Shock Resistance
19 to 61 points
Alloy Composition
Among alloy steels, the composition of SAE-AISI 52100 steel is notable for containing a comparatively high amount of carbon (C). Carbon is used to increase strength at the cost of a decrease in formability.
| Fe | 96.5 to 97.3 | |
| Cr | 1.4 to 1.6 | |
| C | 0.93 to 1.1 | |
| Mn | 0.25 to 0.45 | |
| Si | 0.15 to 0.35 | |
| P | 0 to 0.025 | |
| S | 0 to 0.015 |
All values are % weight. Ranges represent what is permitted under applicable standards.
Followup Questions
Similar Alloys
Further Reading
ASTM A295: Standard Specification for High-Carbon Anti-Friction Bearing Steel
Sintering of Advanced Materials: Fundamentals and Processes, Zhigang Zak Fang (editor), 2010
ASM Specialty Handbook: Carbon and Alloy Steels, J. R. Davis (editor), 1996
Manufacture and Uses of Alloy Steels, Henry D. Hibbard, 2005
Steels: Processing, Structure, and Performance, 2nd ed., George Krauss, 2015