Aluminium AlSi10Mg
The most established aluminium alloy in metal AM. AlSi10Mg offers a good balance of strength, low density, and thermal conductivity — used extensively for lightweight structural parts, heat exchangers, and automotive components.
About Aluminium AlSi10Mg
AlSi10Mg is a near-eutectic aluminium-silicon alloy traditionally used in die casting. Its excellent processability in LPBF — low cracking susceptibility, good powder flowability, and consistent mechanical properties — has made it the default aluminium alloy for metal AM.
The alloy delivers tensile strengths of 400–450 MPa in the as-built condition, which can be slightly reduced (but with improved ductility) after T6-like heat treatment. Its low density (2.68 g/cm³) gives it the highest specific strength of the common AM aluminium alloys.
AlSi10Mg is particularly valued for heat exchangers and thermal management components, where AM-enabled complex internal geometries can dramatically improve heat transfer performance compared to conventional designs.
Typical Applications
- Lightweight aerospace brackets and housings
- Heat exchangers and cold plates
- Automotive engine and turbo components
- Drone and UAV structural parts
- Electronic enclosures with thermal management
Engineering Considerations
- Lower fatigue performance than wrought aluminium alloys (6061, 7075)
- As-built microstructure is metastable — T6 heat treatment changes properties significantly
- Laser reflectivity of aluminium requires higher laser power than steel/titanium
- Anodising may produce less uniform results than wrought aluminium