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Composition of 1974 aluminum cents with trace elements revealed
CaptHenway
Posts: 34,218 ✭✭✭✭✭
The Mint had the 1974-D aluminum cent on display at the Anaheim ANA. A brochure they were giving out said that it was 96% aluminum. I asked the nice young lady at the Mint booth what the other 4% was. She said that she did not know, but that she would find out and get back to me.
Just got the following email which I am posting for posterity, in case the Forum's search function ever gets fixed:
"The remaining 4% was a mix of the following:
Manganese
Iron
Silicon
Copper
Zinc
Zirconium"
TD
Just got the following email which I am posting for posterity, in case the Forum's search function ever gets fixed:
"The remaining 4% was a mix of the following:
Manganese
Iron
Silicon
Copper
Zinc
Zirconium"
TD
Professional Numismatist, Retired. 55 year member ANA. Former ANA Senior Authenticator. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and ANA Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner of the PNG's 2026 Robert Friedberg Award for "The Enigmatic Lincoln Cents of 1922," Available now from Whitman or Amazon.
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Maybe a metallurgist can 'splain to us what that composition contributes to the alloy???
Or, maybe that's just one of the "standard" aluminum compositions, (with standard impurities), that is commercially available?
"Keep your malarkey filter in good operating order" -Walter Breen
What element is TD ?
"Tom DeLorey"
A tough element, not believed to be toxic.
That is consistent with 6061 aluminum (which is a fairly strong alloy). But it is probably consistent with other Al alloys as well, without a quantitative amount for the other elements, it is hard to compare for sure.
I did some searching too....
Assuming the elements are listed by percentage, I found some reference that Manganese alloys are in the 3000 series, and
"The addition of manganese to aluminum increases strength somewhat through solution strengthening and improves strain hardening while not appreciably reducing ductility or corrosion resistance."
Link
Kind of makes sense for coinage?? Maybe??
I have not had my coffee yet..
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