Aluminium recycling

An aluminium recycling symbol.
The European Committee for Standardization logo for aluminium recycling.

Aluminium recycling is the process in which secondary commercial aluminium is created from scrap or other forms of end-of-life or otherwise unusable aluminium.[1] It involves re-melting the metal, which is cheaper and more energy-efficient than the production of virgin aluminium by electrolysis of alumina (Al2O3) refined from raw bauxite by use of the Bayer and Hall–Héroult processes.

Recycling scrap aluminium requires only 5% of the energy used to make new aluminium from the raw ore.[2] In 2022, the United States produced 3.86 metric tons of secondary aluminium for every metric ton of primary aluminium produced. Over the same time period, secondary aluminium accounted for 34% of the total new supply of aluminium including imports.[3] Used beverage containers are the largest component of processed aluminium scrap, and most of it is manufactured back into aluminium cans.[4]

  1. ^ Wallace, G. (2011-01-01), Lumley, Roger (ed.), "4 - Production of secondary aluminium", Fundamentals of Aluminium Metallurgy, Woodhead Publishing Series in Metals and Surface Engineering, Woodhead Publishing, pp. 70–82, doi:10.1533/9780857090256.1.70, ISBN 978-1-84569-654-2, retrieved 2023-11-06
  2. ^ "The price of virtue". The Economist. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 2023-11-06.
  3. ^ "Aluminum Statistics and Information | U.S. Geological Survey". www.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2023-11-06.
  4. ^ "Land, Waste, and Cleanup Topics". United States Environmental Protection Agency.