Aluminium Alloy Effects and Specifcation Guide
Aluminium is mostly used in the form of alloys of pure aluminium in combination with other elements in order to improve the mechanical properties of the metal, especially to increase strength and corrosion resistance. Alloy elements to achieve certain properties on the final product are listed below:
| Element |
Effect |
| Iron (Fe) |
increases the strength |
| Silicon (Si) |
higher strength in combination with Mg |
| Copper (Cu) |
increases the mechanical properties, reduces corrosion-resistance |
| Magnesium (Mn) |
increases the mechanical properties, changes deep-drawing quality |
| Manganese (Mg) |
high strength after cold forming |
| Chromium (Cr) |
more strength in combination with elements like Cu, Mn, Mg |
| Titanium (Ti) |
higher strength |
| Zinc (Zn) |
reduces corrosion-resistance |
|
Main Aluminium-alloy Classifications |
| Alloys with their main elements |
Series |
Typical Applications |
99.0% min Aluminium
|
1XXX
|
foil, Litho-sheet, sheet
|
Copper
|
2XXX
|
aircraft industry
|
Manganese
|
3XXX
|
cans, building, radiators
|
Silicon
|
4XXX
|
heat exchangers & engineering
|
Magnesium
|
5XXX
|
cans, automobile, facades, building, transportation
|
Magnesium and Silicon
|
6XXX
|
automobile, building, transportation
|
Zinc
|
7XXX
|
aircraft industry, radiators
|
other elements
|
8XXX
|
foil (Fe), aircraft industry (Li)
|
Many thanks to Novelis for allowing the use of this information. |
