What is 2024 Aluminum Alloy?
Chemical Properties of 2024 Aluminum
Each alloy contains a specific percentage of alloying elements that imbue the base aluminum with certain beneficial qualities. In 2024 aluminum alloy, these elemental percentages as below data sheet. That’s why 2024 aluminum is known for its high strength because copper, magnesium, and manganese greatly increase the strength of aluminum alloys.
|
Chemical Composition WT(%) |
|||||||||
|
Silicon |
Iron |
Copper |
Magnesium |
Manganese |
Chromium |
Zinc |
Titanium |
Others |
Aluminum |
|
0.5 |
0.5 |
3.8~4.9 |
1.2~1.8 |
0.3~0.9 |
0.1 |
0.25 |
0.15 |
0.15 |
Remaining |
Corrosion Resistance & Cladding
Bare 2024 aluminum alloy is more susceptible to corrosion than most other aluminum alloys, so the manufacturers have addressed this issue by coating these susceptible alloys with a layer of corrosion-resistant metal.
Heat-Treatment for Increased Strength
Type 2024 aluminum gains its optimal strength qualities not just from composition alone, but from the procedure by which is it heat-treated. There are many different procedures, or “tempers” of aluminum (given the designator -Tx, where x is a one-to-five digit long number), which all have their unique properties despite being the same alloy.
Mechanical Properties
For an alloy such as 2024 aluminum, some important measures are ultimate strength, yield strength, shear strength, fatigue strength, as well as the modulus of elasticity and shear modulus. These values will give an idea as to the workability, strength, and potential uses of a material, and are summarized below data sheet.
| Mechanical Properties | Metric | English |
| Ultimate Tensile Strength | 469 MPa | 68000 psi |
| Tensile Yield Strength | 324 MPa | 47000 psi |
| Shear Strength | 283 MPa | 41000 psi |
| Fatigue Strength | 138 MPa | 20000 psi |
| Modulus of Elasticity | 73.1 GPa | 10600 ksi |
| Shear Modulus | 28 GPa | 4060 ksi |
Applications of 2024 Aluminum
Type 2024 aluminum has excellent machinability, good workability, high strength, and can be made to resist corrosion with cladding, making it an optimal choice for aircraft and vehicle applications. 2024 aluminum is used throughout many industries, but some common applications for this excellent alloy are as follows:
Truck wheels
Structural aircraft parts
Gears
Cylinders
Pistons
Fuselage
Wings
Wheel Hub
