Zinc Diecasting Alloys: Publications - Why Zinc

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...about Zinc and Zinc Diecasting Alloys

Why Zinc Diecastings?

Strength

USED FOR SEAT BELTS, MOTOR HOUSINGS, LOCK MECHANISMS AND MANY OTHER APPLICATIONS, ZINC DIECASTINGS HAVE A REPUTATION OF SUPERB FUNCTIONALITY AND RELIABILITY BASED UPON THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF STRENGTH THAT THEY EXHIBIT:

Ø Zinc diecastings’ ambient temperature Yield Strengths are far more superior than those of Aluminium 380 and Magnesium AZ91D.

Ø Zinc diecastings’ Ultimate Tensile Strengths (UTS) can outperform Aluminium 380 and Magnesium AZ91D. Engineering Plastics struggle to deliver equivalent performance of zinc alloy’s UTS. Even glass-reinforced Nylon cannot achieve zinc alloy’s UTS.

Zinc alloys display a high degree of energy absorbing plasticity when subjected to abusive or destructive levels of loading:

At fracture, zinc elongation levels can typically range from 4% to 6%, but can be as high as 12% in thicker wall sections. This means that it can be possible to avoid sudden unexpected catastrophic failures by observing the warnings given by a distorting zinc diecasting when over-loaded. In comparison aluminium and magnesium fail more suddenly at around 3% and with no such warning.

The strength of zinc diecastings - in shear, torsion, under bending and in compression - is far superior to aluminium, magnesium and plastics:

Ø	With a Young’s Modulus of around 96,000 MPa, zinc diecastings are more rigid than Aluminium 380, size for size, and twice as stiff as Magnesium AZ91D.
Ø	Most plastic products would have to be extremely thick in cross-section to compete in engineering terms, thus adding considerably to the cost.

During the casting process, zinc alloy is exceptionally ﬂuid which allows reduced weight and optimal strength of the thin walled castings. Thus, thin but very strong load bearing elements can be placed exactly where they are needed (e.g. at the extremities of the product) for maximum structural strength and performance.

For applications involving continuous loading at elevated temperatures, such as locks, zinc has superior creep strength to reinforced injection moulded plastics.

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