Monday 15 April 2019

GUEST BLOG: Stainless Steel vs Aluminium


Although stainless steel and aluminium might look similar, there are a lot of key differences between the two materials. In this blog post, we cover just a few of these to explain how the two materials compare. If you’d rather learn by video or don’t have time to read through this blog post, then you’re in luck! We’ve also created a quick, 60-second guide as a YouTube video right here https://youtu.be/ETwkW3odY1I

Weight

Stainless Steel is typically 2.5 x denser than Aluminium, therefore making it the heavier material. Due to Aluminium’s lightweight properties it is often favoured in the aerospace industry.

Strength

Compared to Aluminium, Stainless Steel is stronger due to a higher tensile strength… However, Aluminium is more ductile.

Tensile Strength definition: the resistance of a material to breaking under tension.
Ductile definition: Ductility is a physical property of a material associated with the ability to be hammered thin or stretched into wire without breaking.

Corrosion Resistance

Stainless Steel has a multitude of differing grades in both Austenitic and Ferritic, offering different levels of corrosion resistance to suit any application. If Stainless Steel does rust, it can be scrubbed away and the chromium shield will renew itself. Aluminium has a thin layer of Aluminium Oxide, which protects the material from rusting. However, this does not protect the Aluminium from any other forms of corrosion.

Heat Resistance

Stainless Steel can be used at much higher temperatures than Aluminium. Aluminium can become very soft above around 400° Celsius.  

Welding

Stainless Steel is much easier and quicker to weld compared to Aluminium. This is because Stainless Steel shrinks less upon solidification and expands less when heated.

Cost

Aluminium is typically cheaper than Stainless Steel. However, both are recyclable materials.

This post was created by the UKF Group, which supplies a large range of both stainless steel and aluminium products, supporting customers through every stage of their projects. They will be exhibiting at Subcon at the NEC in June. Register for a free visitor pass now - www.subconshow.co.uk/register



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