Anodizing Reference

Series (AA)	Alloying Constituents	Metal Properties	Coating Properties	Uses	A.Q. Types	Non-A.Q. Types**	Finishing Advice
1XXX	None	soft, conductive	clear bright	cans architectural	none	110,1175	care should be taken when racking this soft material: good for bright coatings susceptible to etch staining
2XXX	Copper	very strong, hard low elongation	yellow poor protection	aircraft mechanical	none	2011,2219,2224	since copper content is >2%, these produce yellow, poor weather-resistant coatings don't mix with other alloys on load
3XXX	Manganese	strong, small grain	grayish-brown	cans architectural lighting	none	3003,3004	difficult to match sheet-to-sheet (varying degrees of gray/brown) used extensively for architectural painted products
4XXX	Silicon	strong, fluid	dark gray	architectural lighting	none	4043,4343	produces heavy black smut which is hard to remove 4043 & 4343 used for architectural dark gray finishes in past years
5XXX	Manganese	strong, ductile fluid	clear, good protection	architectural welding wire lighting	5005, 5657	5052,5252	for 5005 - keep silicon <0.1% and ductile good protection welding wire magnesium between 0.7% and fluid lighting 0.9% maximum of 20% for job, watch for oxide streaks
6XXX	Manganese & Silicon	strong, ductile	clear, good protection	architectural structural	6063,6463	6061,6101	matte -iron>0.2% & Silicon ductile good structural bright-iron <0.1% 6063 best match for 5005 6463 best for chemical brightening
7XXX	Zinc	very strong	clear, good protection	automotive	none	7029,7046,7075	zinc over 5% will produce brown tinted coating watch zinc in effluent stream, good for bright coatings

Anodizing Reference

This Aluminum Alloy Reference matches various alloys with finishing advice. Source: Aluminum Anodizers Council (AAC) Technical Bulletin #2-94, Aluminum Alloy Reference for Anodizing, issued March 1994