Materials / Compare
Plastic HDPE vs. Wood
Compare Plastic HDPE vs. Wood strength, stiffness, weight and thermal properties.
| Try it on a partA bracket to run stress or thermal on, free in your browser | Open in LessCAD | Open in LessCAD |
|---|---|---|
| Mechanical | ||
| Yield strength | 24MPasourcetypical, tensile stress at yield 23 °C, 50 mm/min ISO 527 | not given (tensile used) |
| Ultimate tensile strength | not sourced | 99MPasourcemodulus of rupture (no direct tensile value) |
| Compressive strength | not sourced | 46.6MPasourcecompression parallel to grain (maximum crushing strength), 12% MC |
| Flexural strength | not sourced | 99MPasourcemodulus of rupture (static bending), 12% MC |
| Elongation at break | not sourced | not sourced |
| Young's modulus (stiffness) | 0.9GPasourcetypical, tensile modulus 23 °C ISO 527 | 12.5GPasourcebending MOE, parallel to grain |
| Density | 950kg/m³sourcetypical, ISO 1183 | not sourced |
| Strength to weight | 25.3kN·m/kg | not sourced |
| Stiffness to weight | 0.947MN·m/kg | not sourced |
| Poisson's ratio | 0.4–0.45sourcebase material: high-density polyethylene family (INEOS Olefins & Polymers USA, Typical Engineering Properties of HDPE) | 0.35sourcemu_LR (red oak group, ~12% MC) |
| Shear modulus | 0.316GPa | 4.63GPa14.7x stiffer in shear |
| Bulk modulus | 2GPa | 13.9GPa |
| Speed of sound | 973m/s | not sourced |
| Thermal | ||
| Thermal conductivity | 0.4–0.49W/m·Ksourcebase material: high-density polyethylene family (INEOS Olefins & Polymers USA, Typical Engineering Properties of HDPE) | 0.18W/m·Ksourceacross grain, 12% MC (Table 4-7, approximate) |
| Thermal expansion | 120µm/m·Ksourcebase material: high-density polyethylene family (INEOS Olefins & Polymers USA, Typical Engineering Properties of HDPE) | 3.1–4.5µm/m·Ksourceparallel to grain, ovendry wood, range across species |
| 100 mm part over a 50 °C swing | 600µm growth | 19µm growth31.6x less |
| Specific heat | 2,250J/kg·Ksourcebase material: high-density polyethylene family (INEOS Olefins & Polymers USA, Typical Engineering Properties of HDPE) | 1,700J/kg·Ksourcesolid wood (all species), 12% MC, 27 C |
| Heats up and cools (diffusivity) | 0.208mm²/s | not sourced |
| Thermal shock resistance | 56.9W/m | 244W/m4.29x more resistant |
| Values for | LyondellBasell Hostalen 23050 B high density polyethylene, typical ISO values | Northern red oak (Quercus rubra), clear straight-grained specimens at 12% MC, parallel to grain unless stated; USDA FPL Wood Handbook FPL-GTR-282 (2021) Ch. 4 and Ch. 5 |
Every value links to the document that states it. "Not sourced" means no citable source states it (or only a specification minimum); figures computed from it are left out too.
Questions
Is Plastic HDPE stronger than Wood?
Wood is stronger: its tensile strength is 99 MPa against yield strength 24 MPa for Plastic HDPE (4.13x).
Which is stiffer, Plastic HDPE or Wood?
Wood is stiffer: Young's modulus 12.5 GPa against 0.9 GPa for Plastic HDPE, so the same part in Wood deflects less under the same load.
Which conducts heat better, Plastic HDPE or Wood?
Plastic HDPE conducts heat better: 0.445 W/m·K against 0.18 W/m·K for Wood.
Which expands less with temperature?
Wood expands less: 3.8 µm/m·K against 120 µm/m·K for Plastic HDPE.