Metallurgy Interview Question:

Is there any way through hardening and anodizing some type of aluminum, it could be as hard as steel? I have hardened steel rollers that run up and down on a ramp along with spring pressure. Alternatively, if you are familiar with snowmobiles, the rollers run on the helix on the secondary clutch.

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Aluminum, while it is incredible for some applications due to it being lightweight, is a very soft and weak metal. There really is not any way to get it any where near the hardness of steel. What people are doing for applications requiring lightweight, but strong materials is going with some new age alloys, mostly consisting of titanium and nickel.
Submitted by: Administrator