Alcoa North American Rolled Products High Machinability Alloy 6013 Power Plate

6013 Power Plate Alcoa's High Machinability Alloy Customer surveys have shown that good machinability is a key requirement for most 6061 Aluminum Plate applications. 6013 – Power Plate offers improved machinability, higher hardness, increased strength and smoother sawed and machined surfaces than existing 6061-T651 plate. 6013 – Power Plate users experience all of these benefits without sacrificing the excellent corrosion resistance, weldability and thermal conductivity of 6051-T651. Working with Alcoa’s Technical and Research Center, the Davenport rolling mill developed 6013 – Power Plate to meet the higher speed and feed capabilities of today’s state of the art, high-speed saws and metal working machinery. Applications for 6013 – Power Plate are broad and varied, ranging from fixtures to molds, machined parts to semiconductor fabrication equipment. It accommodates virtually any application requiring increased strength, higher hardness, better surface finish and machinability, offering the processor or end user improved productivity and cost benefits. Better Machinability A standardized lathe test ranks machinability by measuring cut chip sizes and surface finishes. This measurement system ranks alloys from “A” (Superior Machinability) to “E” (Difficult to machine). 6013 – Power Plate offers a “B” Machinability rating with small, curled, easily broken chips and an excellent cut finish in accordance with standardized testing methods. Increased Productivity and Profitability The small, broken chips of 6013 – Power Plate are easier to “clear” from the part, helping keep the part and tooling lubricated, cool and clean during sawing, machining, milling, drilling or tapping operations. The smaller, less “stringy” chips reduce downtime due to metal build-up on cutting tools. 6013 – Power Plate offers the potential for higher machining speeds and feed rates, easier deburring and better machined and sawed finishes. For example, slot milling tests show that 6013 – Power Plate can be consistently milled at a rate of 100 inches/minute, using a 3/4" diameter cutter at 6000 RPM. Identical tests performed using 6061-T651 resulted in machine stall due to metal build-up on the cutter at feed rates greater than 75 in./minute. Proportionally higher feed rates are possible with machinery capable of attaining speed greater than 6000 RPM. Speed and feed rates of 6013 - Power Plate will consistently outperform the rates attainable using 6061 alloy. Higher Strength and Hardness 6013 – Power Plate has 20%-25% higher strength and hardness over 6061-T651. It provides an opportunity for customers to redesign machined parts for thinner walls and lighter weights. Higher hardness translates into extended life for molds, slides and parts used in continuous or abrasive service. Stability Higher strength products normally exhibit proportionately higher residual stress levels. 6013 – Power Plate, with stress levels similar to 2024 alloy, is stress relieved to minimize movements during sawing or machining operations. Applications requiring better flatness may not be suitable for higher strength alloys.