Overall, zinc alloys have significant advantages as casting materials for small components, with excellent physical and mechanical properties, castability and finishing characteristics. Hot chamber die cast zinc alloys can be cast to tight tolerances, complex detail, net shape, and the alloy's dimensional stability ensures part-to-part consistency over long production runs. Net shape manufacturing is one of the main advantages of hot chamber die cast zinc alloys.
The most commonly used zinc alloys are ZAMAK™ 2, ZAMAK™ 3, ZAMAK™ 5, Acuzinc. These alloy families offer higher tensile strengths than most aluminum and magnesium alloys, higher yield strengths, greater impact resistance, higher Brinell hardness, and better ductility.
- Zinc alloys facilitate higher die casting cycle speeds versus aluminum and other metal alloys, more complex shapes, thinner wall sections, smoother surface finishes, and higher standards of dimensional accuracy.
- Compared to plastic, zinc alloys are several times stronger and many times more rigid. Their mechanical properties compare favorably with powdered iron, brass, and screw-machined steel.
- Zinc has inherent EMI/RFI shielding properties.