Aluminum is a common metal used for both industrial and non-industrial applications. In most cases, it can be difficult to choose the correct Aluminum grade for your intended application. If your project does not have any physical or structural demands, and the aesthetics are not important, then almost any Aluminum grade will do the job.

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We have compiled a short breakdown of each of the grades' properties in order to provide you with a brief understanding of their many uses.

Alloy 1100: This grade is commercially pure aluminum. It is soft and ductile and has excellent workability, making it ideal for applications with difficult forming. It can be welded using any method, but it is non-heat-treatable. It has excellent resistance to corrosion and is commonly used in the chemical and food processing industries.

Alloy 2011: High mechanical strength and excellent machining capabilities are the highlights of this grade. It is often called "Free Machining Alloy (FMA)," an excellent choice for projects done on automatic lathes. The high-speed machining of this grade will produce fine chips that are easily removed. Alloy 2011 is an excellent choice for the production of complex and detailed parts.

Alloy 2014: A copper-based alloy with very high strength and excellent machining capabilities. This alloy is commonly used in many aerospace structural applications due to its resistance.

Alloy 2024: One of the most commonly used high-strength aluminum alloys. With its combination of high strength and excellent fatigue resistance, it is commonly used where a good strength-to-weight ratio is desired. This grade can be machined to a high finish and can be formed in the annealed condition with subsequent heat treating if needed. The corrosion resistance of this grade is relatively low. When this is an issue, 2024 is commonly used in an anodized finish or in clad form (thin surface layer of high purity aluminum) known as Alclad.

Alloy 3003: The most widely used of all aluminum alloys. A commercially pure aluminum with added manganese to increase its strength (20% stronger than the 1100 grade). It has excellent corrosion resistance and workability. This grade can be deep drawn or spun, welded, or brazed.

Alloy 5052: This is the highest strength alloy of the more non-heat-treatable grades. Its fatigue strength is higher than most other aluminum grades. Alloy 5052 has good resistance to marine atmosphere and salt water corrosion, and excellent workability. It can be easily drawn or formed into intricate shapes.

Alloy 6061: The most versatile of the heat-treatable aluminum alloys while keeping most of the good qualities of aluminum. This grade has a great range of mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. It can be fabricated by most of the commonly used techniques and it has good workability in the annealed condition. It is welded by all methods and can be furnace brazed. As a result, it is used in a wide variety of products and applications where appearance and better corrosion resistance with good strength are required. The Tube and Angle shapes in this grade typically have rounded corners.

Alloy 6063: Commonly known as an architectural alloy. It has reasonably high tensile properties, excellent finishing characteristics, and a high degree of resistance to corrosion. Most often found in various interior and exterior architectural applications and trim. It is very well suited for anodizing applications. The Tube and Angle shapes in this grade typically have square corners.

Alloy 7075: This is one of the highest strength aluminum alloys available. It has an excellent strength-to-weight ratio, and it is ideally used for highly stressed parts. This grade can be formed in the annealed condition and subsequently heat treated if needed. It can also be spot or flash welded (arc and gas not recommended).

Don’t have time to read the blog? You can check out our video below to find out which aluminum grade to use:

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For more specific applications, we have put together a table that will easily let you decide on what Aluminum grade to use for your project:

How to Choose the Right Aluminum Alloy

More than 540 registered compositions. I'm talking about the number of aluminum alloys that are available today. Do you know how to choose the one for your product?

Aluminum can be alloyed with other metals and non-metals. This allows the aluminum to take on different properties. Iron (Fe) and silicon (Si) are naturally found in aluminum, from the bauxite, and are in virtually all technically used aluminum materials.

Aluminum that contains as much as 1 percent by weight of iron and silicon together is called unalloyed or pure aluminum.

Unalloyed aluminum is soft and has low strength, and its use is limited. Alloyed aluminum, on the other hand, has increased mechanical properties and can therefore be used in many different contexts.

Common alloying substances, beyond iron and silicon, are magnesium (Mg), manganese (Mn), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn).

An outstanding aluminum company needs to have metallurgical competence and the ability to ensure the alloy composition can be produced in a repeatable and consistent way – and that the alloy actually achieves what we want it to achieve.

Finding the Right Alloy

But let me get back to the main question: How do you choose the right alloy for your product? There are, as I mentioned, more than 540 registered alloys.

Start by specifying your needs. Here are some properties to consider:

• Strength
• Surface finish
• Suitability for decorative anodizing
• Corrosion resistance
• Machinability
• Weldability
• Production economics – price

You can find lists and guides on the internet – consider the source! – where alloy families are graded according to these characteristics, and you can also find recommendations. This will help you get closer to the right alloy.

But be aware that not all alloy compositions are found on all the lists. My advice: Do your homework and then talk to an expert.

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