What Are The Everyday Uses Of Aluminium Sheets?

If you are looking for a strong metal for any domestic or industrial application

, you have many options to choose from. Metals like copper, zinc and alloys like steel, bronze, brass and the like are your basic options. However, you can choose aluminium because it has a lot of salient properties that the other metals do not have.

Aluminium is very strong, yet it is not very heavy. Like other metals, it conducts electricity and heat to a moderate degree. Most industries require aluminium sheets for various purposes. Aluminium can be easily beaten into sheets because of its high malleability.

Aluminium sheets are used extensively in an aircraft industry. The wings of an airplane are made from reinforced aluminium, and the frame is also made from aluminium. It can easily be welded and has good corrosion resistance. The degree of reinforcement depends on the values of lift and drag forces that the airplane experiences at high altitudes. The process of beating a metal into sheets and bringing it to the desired shape is called sheet metal forming or sheet metal fabrication. There are many sheet metal forming processes viz. shearing, drawing, squeezing and bending. Under each process, there are many sub operations like blanking, notching, trimming and so on.

There are four grades of aluminium sheets that are available in the industrial market today. The grades are 6061-T6, 3003-H14, 5052-H32 and 1100-H14. Grade 6061-T6 is not ideal for a sheet metal forming process since its formability is low. Grade 3003-H14 can be easily welded and provides good resistance to corrosion. It is used in light duty applications like stamping dies and polymer integrated materials. It is quite cheap and is widely used. Grade 5052-H32 is a stronger variety of aluminium and is used in heavy duty applications like hydraulic presses, airplane chassis and tanks. All the above grades are alloys of aluminium. Grade 1100-H14 is not an alloy and has low strength. However, it is quite ductile and can be used in jewellery.

An aluminium sheet finds application in a household also. Tables, chairs and electric iron tables, refrigerator trays, window frames and lighting fixtures can be made using aluminium. Because of its high thermal conductivity, it is used as a covering for ovens and utensils also. The metals added to the aluminium alloy are copper, silicon, manganese and iron. It has good abrasion resistance as well. The metal is first stressed beyond its ultimate strength and a blank is cut off. Form ability tests are carried out and special forming techniques are employed to bend the sheet into the desired shape.

Some of these special techniques are hydroforming, explosive farming, peen forming, metal spinning, rubber pad forming, magnetic pulse forming and super plastic forming. Aluminium lithium alloys are also used in special forming processes. When you select an aluminium sheet, you should look at properties like elongation, anisotropy, residual stresses and compressive strength. You can approach a sheet metal company for a customised end product which will suit your application. You can also find such companies on the Internet.

by: Lawrence White

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