Die casting material spotlight: EZAC

If you are looking for a high-strength, creep-resistant, zinc-based alloy, read on. Dynacast partners with Eastern Alloys, Inc., a manufacturer of world-class zinc alloys. They are continually developing new alloys that provide better, more economical ways to die cast. By working closely with them, Dynacast offers alloys that many of its competitors do not. This ensures that our customers receive the best possible alloy for their components.

Overview of zinc alloys

When zinc die casting first became available, it quickly gained recognition as a lightweight and cost-effective alternative to other alloys such as tin and lead. Over the past century, zinc alloys have made steady progress. While zinc has always been recognised for its high strength, the introduction of the Zamak family, and now the revolutionary EZAC™ alloy, has further enhanced the suitability of hot-chamber die casting zinc alloys for a wide range of applications. Prior to the introduction of EZAC™, zinc was often overlooked for applications requiring high tensile strength, especially high-temperature tensile strength. Additionally, most zinc alloys exhibited low creep resistance compared with other materials. These areas for improvement were the primary focus during the development of EZAC™, resulting in a zinc alloy that surpasses previous limitations.

Benefits of EZAC

The EZAC™ alloy provides exceptional benefits compared with other zinc alloys. It offers superior creep resistance, higher yield strength and increased hardness. In fact, during creep resistance tests conducted at 140°C and 31MPa, EZAC™ outlasts Zamak 2 by approximately fourteen times and ACuZinc5 by three times, achieving an impressive duration of 730 hours. This remarkable performance ensures enhanced reliability and longevity for your die casting projects, making EZAC™ the ideal choice for demanding applications.

Comparing EZAC with other alloys

In terms of yield strength, EZAC™ is comparable to ZA-27, the strongest cold-chamber zinc die casting alloy. With a yield strength of 396 MPa, surpassing all other hot-chamber zinc die casting alloys, EZAC™ achieves a 42% improvement over Zamak 2 and a 19% improvement over ACuZinc5. The hardness of EZAC™ also demonstrates a 19% improvement over Zamak 2 and an 11% improvement compared with ACuZinc5. These advances in yield strength and hardness make EZAC™ a superior choice for die casting applications, ensuring enhanced performance and durability.

To compare the mechanical and physical properties of other alloys, try our  metal selector tool!

While EZAC exhibits low elongation at approximately 1%, it maintains comparable impact strength to ACuZinc5 at 2.2ft-lbs.

Compared with other high-strength zinc alloys such as ACuZinc5 and ZA27, EZAC has demonstrated excellent castability without causing accelerated wear on shot-end components.