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Aluminium alloys

Description

Aluminum was once so rare and precious that the Emperor Napoleon III of France had a set of cutlery made from it that cost him more than silver. But that was 1860; today, nearly 150 years later, aluminum spoons are things you throw away - a testament to our ability to be both technically creative and wasteful. Aluminum, the first of the 'light alloys' (with magnesium and titanium), is the third most abundant metal in the earth's crust (after iron and silicon) but extracting it costs much energy. It has grown to be the second most important metal in the economy (steel comes first), and the mainstay of the aerospace industry.

Al + alloying elements, e.g. Mg, Mn, Cr, Cu, Zn, Zr, Li

Aluminum can formed both by casting and by deformation.

GENERAL PROPERTIES
Density	2500	-	2900	kg/m^3
Price	*1.683	-	2.048	USD/kg

Young’s modulus

GPa

Yield strength (elastic limit)

500

MPa

Tensile strength

550

MPa

Elongation

Hardness - Vickers

150.5

Fatigue strength at 10^7 cycles

21.6

157

MPa

Fracture toughness

MP a.m^1/2

Thermal conductor or insulator?

Good conductor

Thermal conductivity

235

W/m.K

Thermal expansion

µstrain/°C

Specific heat

857

990

J/kg.K

Melting point

474.9

679.9

°C

Maximum service temperature

120

210

°C

Electrical conductor or insulator?

Good conductor

Transparency

Opaque

Production energy

184

203

MJ/kg

CO2 creation

11.6

12.8

kg/kg

Recycle

True

Typical uses

Aerospace engineering; automotive engineering - pistons, clutch housings, exhaust manifolds; die cast chassis for household and electronic products; siding for buildings; foil for containers and packaging; beverage cans; electrical and thermal conductors.

Reference

ProcessUniverse

Producers