Aluminum Alloy refers to a combination of material with aluminum to make an alloy that is corrosion resistant and is stronger. Aluminum alloys are either cast or wrought and they could be used in various industrial applications. They could be either heat treated or not, depending on the standards, grades and the types of the alloy. The Aluminum Alloy properties include good tensile strength, optimum density and lightweight, the ductility, formability and weldability of the element as well. Depending on the different grades of the material, the Aluminum Alloy composition can change dramatically.

There are copper, silicon, iron, manganese, magnesium, zinc, titanium, lithium and even cadmium. The Aluminum Alloy grades are nominated with numbers. There are alloys called 1100, 1145, 1230, 1350, 1440 and so on in the 1000 series. There are also the 2000 series, 3000, 4000, 5000, 6000, 7000 and the 8000 series of this material. The medium range of the Aluminum Alloy melting point at 655 degrees Celsius makes the alloys be used in various high temperature applications. The melting point differs from alloy to alloy.

There are alloys that have very high melting points which could be used in aerospace industry in jet engine parts and in combustion components. The Aluminum Alloy series denotes the composition of the material. Each number correspond to the components in the composition and the charts can give a comprehensive understanding of what elements are available in which quantities and in which alloy series.

What is Aluminum Alloy?

Aluminum by itself is a soft, pliable material. In order to make it more usable for a variety of products and applications, it goes through an alloying process where it is combined with other elements such as silicon, copper, magnesium, manganese, and zinc in order to enhance its strength and other properties.

For classification purposes, aluminum alloys are identified by four-digit numbers. The first digit identifies a general class, or series, characterized by its main alloying elements.

Alloys in the 1xxx series are the closest to pure, unalloyed aluminum. In fact, in this series, aluminum comprises about 99% of the chemical makeup. Because of the softness of this grade of aluminum, it has excellent weldability, but is not typically used for applications requiring high strength.