Aerospace
Skins, spars, seat tracks — still the volume airframe metal.
Darker cells mean a higher score for this topic on that metric.
Strength62
Heat resistance48
Fire performance70
Insulation12
Workability90
Circularity72
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Quick answers
Aluminium or aluminum?
Same metal. IUPAC aluminium; US spelling aluminum. Specs use either.
Why is it light but not “weak”?
Specific strength of 7075 can beat mild steel; stiffness per volume still loses to steel.
Does it burn?
Bulk metal melts in fire; powders and some façade cores are the combustible stories.
Is it a good insulator?
No. It is a heat spreader. Foil radiant barriers reflect radiation; they are not bulk λ insulation.
Why do cans recycle so well?
Single alloy family, magnetic-free sort, huge volume, remelt energy is low.
Can I weld 7075?
Generally a bad idea for strength; designers rivet, bond or use 2000/5000 weldables instead.
heat 48 · fire 70
Aluminium earns its keep in systems: a beam, a batt, a fibre blend, a coated steel — rarely a lone coupon.
Products below are cultural landmarks as much as SKUs.
Sectors
Packaging
Cans and foil: the recycling poster child.
Architecture
Curtain wall, roofing, composite panels (watch the core).
Transport
Rail cars, EV battery boxes, truck bodies.
Electrical
Busbars and overhead conductors.
Consumer
Laptops, cookware, heat sinks.
Products
UBC can
3004/3104 body
6063 window
Architectural extrusion
7075 fitting
Aero
5083 hull plate
Marine
Foil 8011
Packaging
ADC12 casting
Automotive
ACSR conductor
Grid
Heat-sink extrusion
Electronics
Pairings
CFRP
Hybrid airframes: aluminium where toughness and cost win, carbon where mass wins.
Steel fasteners
Isolate or coat — galvanic is not theoretical at the seacoast.
Polymer foam cores
ACP fire class is about the core, not the aluminium skins.
Anodic paint
Coil coatings for coastal roofs.
If the pairing is wrong, the material will be blamed for a system fault.
Keep exploring
More in Metals
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Steel
The iron–carbon workhorse of buildings, ships, rails and tools — endlessly recast.
Overall 66 ✈️Titanium
High specific strength and chloride-tolerant films — airframes, implants and seawater.
Overall 58 🔶Copper
The first industrial conductor — wiring, heat exchangers, roofs that go green.
Overall 57 🍴Stainless steel
Chromium passive films that keep kitchens, chemical plant and façades from rusting like carbon steel.
Overall 64