Due to poor corrosion resistance, it is often clad with aluminium or Al-1Zn for protection, although this may reduce the fatigue strength.
[3] Aluminium alloy 2024 has a density of 2.78 g/cm3 (0.1 lb/in3), electrical conductivity of 30% IACS, Young's modulus of 73 GPa (10.6 Msi) across all tempers, and begins to melt at 500 °C (932 °F).
The material has elongation (stretch before ultimate failure) of 10–25%, this is the allowable range per applicable AMS specifications.
Due to its high strength and fatigue resistance, 2024 is widely used in aircraft, especially wing and fuselage structures under tension.
[6][7] Additionally, since the material is susceptible to thermal shock, 2024 is used in the qualification of liquid penetrant tests outside of normal temperature ranges.