Mechanical properties
Zirconium and hafnium properties

Table 2 summarizes the tensile and hardness characteristics of selected materials. The influence of sampling direction is particularly important for yield strength and elongation at break.

For thin pilger tubes used in nuclear applications (thickness around 0.5 mm), the Kearns factors are approximately f_L = 0.06, f_T = 0.34, f_N = 0.60. For thicker products (e.g. extruded tube, hot-rolled sheet with a thickness of 6 mm), the transverse factor f_T may be significantly higher, to the detriment of f_N (f_T = 0.50, f_N = 0.44). Finally, for a product quenched from the β phase, the texture is pseudo-isotropic, and the three Kearns factors are close to 1/3.