Aluminium Alloy

Specifications

Aluminium is the worlds most abundant metal and is

the third most common element comprising 8% of the
earths crust. The versatility of aluminium makes it the
most widely used metal after steel.
Aluminium is derived from the mineral bauxite. Bauxite
is converted to aluminium oxide (alumina) via the
Bayer Process. The alumina is then converted to
aluminium metal using electrolytic cells and the HallHeroult Process.
Worldwide demand for aluminium is around 29 million
tons per year. About 22 million tons is new aluminium
and 7 million tons is recycled aluminium scrap. The use
of
recycled
aluminium
is
economically
and
environmentally compelling. It takes 14,000 kWh to
produce 1 tonne of new aluminium. Conversely it takes
only 5% of this to remelt and recycle one tonne of
aluminium. There is no difference in quality between
virgin and recycled aluminium alloys.
Pure aluminium is soft, ductile, corrosion resistant and
has a high electrical conductivity. It is widely used for
foil and conductor cables, but alloying with other
elements is necessary to provide the higher strengths
needed for other applications. Aluminium is one of the
lightest engineering metals, having a strength to
weight ratio superior to steel.
By utilising various combinations of its advantageous
properties such as strength, lightness, corrosion
resistance, recyclability and formability, aluminium is
being employed in an ever-increasing number of
applications. This array of products ranges from
structural materials through to thin packaging foils.

ALLOY DESIGNATIONS
Aluminium is most commonly alloyed with copper, zinc,
magnesium, silicon, manganese and lithium. Small
additions of chromium, titanium, zirconium, lead,
bismuth and nickel are also made and iron is invariably
present in small quantities.
There are over 300 wrought alloys with 50 in common
use. They are normally identified by a four figure
system which originated in the USA and is now
universally accepted. Table 1 describes the system for
wrought alloys. Cast alloys have similar designations
and use a five digit system.

ALLOY DESIGNATIONS CONT...

Table 1.
Designations for wrought aluminium alloys.
Alloying
Alloying
Alloying
Alloying
Alloying
Alloying
Alloying

Element
Element
Element
Element
Element
Element
Element

None (99%+ Aluminium) - 1XXX

Copper - 2XXX
Manganese - 3XXX
Silicon - 4XXX
Magnesium - 5XXX
Magnesium + Silicon - 6XXX
Zinc - 7XXX

Alloying Element Lithium/Other - 8XXX

For unalloyed wrought aluminium alloys designated
1XXX, the last two digits represent the purity of the
metal. They are the equivalent to the last two digits
after the decimal point when aluminium purity is
expressed to the nearest 0.01 percent. The second
digit indicates modifications in impurity limits. If the
second digit is zero, it indicates unalloyed aluminium
having natural impurity limits and 1 through 9, indicate
individual impurities or alloying elements.
For the 2XXX to 8XXX groups, the last two digits
identify different aluminium alloys in the group. The
second digit indicates alloy modifications. A second
digit of zero indicates the original alloy and integers 1
to 9 indicate consecutive alloy modifications.

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REVISION HISTORY
Datasheet Updated

12 September 2011

DISCLAIMER
This Data is indicative only and must not be seen as a substitute for the full
specification from which it is drawn. In particular, the mechanical property
requirements vary widely with temper, product and product dimensions. The
information is based on our present knowledge and is given in good faith.
However, no liability will be accepted by the Company is respect of any
action taken by any third party in reliance thereon.
As the products detailed may be used for a wide variety of purposes and as
the Company has no control over their use; the Company specifically
excludes all conditions or warranties expressed or implied by statute or
otherwise as to dimensions, properties and/or fitness for any particular
purpose.
Any advice given by the Company to any third party is given for that partys
assistance only and without liability on the part of the Company. Any
contract between the Company and a customer will be subject to the
companys Conditions of Sale. The extent of the Companys liabilities to any
customer is clearly set out in those Conditions; a copy of which is available
on request.

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Aluminium Alloy
Specifications

Physical Properties
Density
Aluminium has a density around one third
that of steel or copper making it one of the
lightest commercially available metals. The
resultant high strength to weight ratio
makes it an important structural material
allowing increased payloads or fuel savings
for transport industries in particular.

Electrical Conductivity
Along with copper, aluminium has an
electrical conductivity high enough for use
as an electrical conductor. Although the
conductivity
of
the
commonly
used
conducting alloy (1350) is only around 62%
of annealed copper, it is only one third the
weight and can therefore conduct twice as
much electricity when compared with
copper of the same weight.

Reflectivity
Strength
Pure aluminium doesnt have a high tensile
strength. However, the addition of alloying
elements like manganese, silicon, copper
and magnesium can increase the strength
properties of aluminium and produce an
alloy with properties tailored to particular
applications.
Aluminium
is
well
suited
to
cold
environments. It has the advantage over
steel in that its tensile strength increases
with decreasing temperature while retaining
its toughness. Steel on the other hand
becomes brittle at low temperatures.

Corrosion Resistance
When exposed to air, a layer of aluminium
oxide forms almost instantaneously on the
surface of aluminium. This layer has
excellent resistance to corrosion. It is fairly
resistant to most acids but less resistant to
alkalis.

Thermal Conductivity
The thermal conductivity of aluminium is
about three times greater than that of
steel. This makes aluminium an important
material for both cooling and heating
applications such as heat-exchangers.
Combined with it being non-toxic this
property
means
aluminium
is
used
extensively
in
cooking
utensils
and
kitchenware.

From UV to infra-red, aluminium is an

excellent reflector of radiant energy. Visible
light reflectivity of around 80% means it is
widely used in light fixtures. The same
properties of reflectivity makes aluminium
ideal as an insulating material to protect
against the suns rays in summer, while
insulating against heat loss in winter.

Table 2. Typical properties for aluminium.

Property

Value

Atomic Number

13

Atomic Weight (g/mol)

26.98

Valency

Crystal Structure

FCC

Melting Point (C)

660.2

Boiling Point (C)

2480

Mean Specific Heat (0-100C)

(cal/g.C)

0.219

Thermal Conductivity (0-100C)

(cal/cms. C)

0.57

Co-Efficient of Linear Expansion

(0-100C) (x10-6/C)

23.5

Electrical Resistivity at 20C

(.cm)

2.69

Density (g/cm3)

2.6898

Modulus of Elasticity (GPa)

68.3

Poissons Ratio

0.34

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Aluminium Alloy
Specifications
Alloying, cold working and heat-treating can
all be utilised to tailor the properties of
aluminium.

Mechanical Properties
Aluminium can be severely deformed
without failure. This allows aluminium to be
formed by rolling, extruding, drawing,

The tensile strength of pure aluminium is

around 90 MPa but this can be increased to
over 690 MPa for some heat-treatable
alloys.

machining and other mechanical processes.

It can also be cast to a high tolerance.

Table 3. Mechanical properties of selected aluminium alloys.

Alloy

Temper

Proof
Stress
0.2% (MPa)

Tensile
Strength
(MPa)

Shear
Strength
(MPa)

Elongation
A5 (%)

Hardness
Vickers
(HV)

AA1050A

H12
H14
H16
H18
0

85
105
120
140
35

100
115
130
150
80

60
70
80
85
50

12
10
7
6
42

30
36
44
20

AA2011

T3
T6

290
300

365
395

220
235

15
12

100
115

AA3103

H14
0

140
45

155
105

90
70

9
29

46
29

AA4015

0
H12
H14
H16
H18

45
110
135
155
180

110-150
135-175
160-200
185-225
210-250

20
4
3
2
2

30-40
45-55
-

AA5083

H32
0/H111

240
145

330
300

185
175

17
23

95
75

AA5251

H22
H24
H26
0

165
190
215
80

210
230
255
180

125
135
145
115

14
13
9
26

65
70
75
46

AA5754

H22
H24
H26
0

185
215
245
100

245
270
290
215

150
160
170
140

15
14
10
25

75
80
85
55

AA6063

0
T4
T6

50
90
210

100
160
245

70
11
150

27
21
14

85
50
80

AA6082

0
T4
T6

60
170
310

130
260
340

85
170
210

27
19
11

35
75
100

AA6262

T6
T9

240
330

290
360

8
3

AA7075

0
T6

105-145
435-505

225-275
510-570

150
350

9
5

65
160

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Aluminium Alloy
Specifications

Aluminium Standards
The old BS1470 standard has been replaced
by nine EN standards. The EN standards are
given in table 4.

Heat Treatment
A range of heat treatments can be applied
to aluminium alloys:

Table 4. EN standards for aluminium

Standard

Scope

EN485-1

Technical conditions for

inspection and delivery

EN485-2

Mechanical properties

EN485-3

Tolerances for hot rolled

material

EN485-4

Tolerances for cold rolled

material

EN515

Temper designations

EN573-1

Numerical alloy designation

system

EN573-2

Chemical symbol designation

system

EN573-3

Chemical compositions

EN573-4

Product forms in different alloys

The EN standards differ from the old

standard, BS1470 in the following areas:
Chemical compositions unchanged.
Alloy numbering system unchanged.
Temper designations for heat treatable
alloys now cover a wider range of
special tempers. Up to four digits after
the T have been introduced for nonstandard applications (e.g. T6151).
Temper
designations for non heat
treatable alloys existing tempers are
unchanged but tempers are now more
comprehensively defined in terms of
how they are created. Soft (O) temper
is now H111 and an intermediate
temper H112 has been introduced. For
alloy 5251 tempers are now shown as
H32/H34/H36/H38
(equivalent
to
H22/H24, etc). H19/H22 & H24 are now
shown separately.
Mechanical properties remain similar
to previous figures. 0.2% Proof Stress
must now be quoted on test certificates.
Tolerances have been tightened to various
degrees.

Homogenisation the removal of

segregation by heating after casting.
Annealing used after cold working to
soften work-hardening alloys (1XXX,
3XXX and 5XXX).
Precipitation or age hardening (alloys
2XXX, 6XXX and 7XXX).
Solution heat treatment before ageing
of precipitation hardening alloys.
Stoving for the curing of coatings

After heat treatment a suffix is added to the

designation numbers.
The suffix F means as fabricated.
O means annealed wrought products.
T means that it has been heat treated.
W means the material has been solution
heat treated.
H refers to non heat treatable alloys
that are cold worked or strain
hardened.
The non-heat treatable alloys are those in
the 3XXX, 4XXX and 5XXX groups.

Table 5. Heat treatment designations for

aluminium and aluminium alloys.

Term

Description

T1

Cooled from an elevated

temperature shaping process and
naturally aged.

T2

Cooled from an elevated

temperature shaping process cold
worked and naturally aged.

T3

Solution heat-treated cold worked

and naturally aged to a
substantially.

T4

Solution heat-treated and

naturally aged to a substantially
stable condition.

T5

Cooled from an elevated

temperature shaping process and
then artificially aged.

T6

Solution heat-treated and then

artificially aged.

T7

Solution heat-treated and

overaged/stabilised.

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Aluminium Alloy
Specifications

Work Hardening

Table 7. Temper codes for plate

The non-heat treatable alloys can have

their properties adjusted by cold working.
Cold rolling is a typical example.
These adjusted properties depend upon the
degree of cold work and whether working is
followed by any annealing or stabilising
thermal treatment.
Nomenclature to describe these treatments
uses a letter, O, F or H followed by one or
more numbers. As outlined in Table 6, the
first number refers to the worked condition
and the second number the degree of
tempering.
Table
6.
designations

Non-Heat

treatable

Code

Description

H112

Alloys that have some tempering

from shaping but do not have
special control over the amount of
strain-hardening or thermal
treatment. Some strength limits
apply.

H321

Strain hardened to an amount less

than required for a controlled H32
temper.

H323

A version of H32 that has been

specially fabricated to provide
acceptable resistance to stress
corrosion cracking.

H343

A version of H34 that has been

specially fabricated to provide
acceptable resistance to stress
corrosion cracking.

alloy

Term

Description

H1X

Work hardened

H115

Armour plate.

H2X

Work hardened and partially

annealed

H116

Special corrosion-resistant temper.

H3X

Work hardened and stabilized by

low temperature treatment

H4X

Work hardened and stoved

HX2

Quarter-hard degree of working

HX4

Half-hard degree of working

HX6

Three-quarter hard degree of

working

HX8

Full-hard degree of working

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Copyright: Aalco Metals Ltd, 25 High Street, Cobham, Surrey KT11 3DH