As the steel vs. aluminum battle wages on in the automotive world, Alcoa is bringing a new technology to the lightweighting fight.
The aluminum producer has developed a new manufacturing process that allows it to make an aluminum alloy that is 40% more formable and 30% stronger than existing aluminum.
That means, in short, that Alcoa is addressing in one fell swoop some of the major hurdles keeping aluminum from becoming a more pervasive material on vehicles. Using its Micromill technology, it is creating a more flexible, stronger aluminum that is 30% lighter than high-strength steel.
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