Aluminium Recycling

Information on recycling aluminium


 
  • Recycling one kilogram of aluminium can save up to 8 kilograms of bauxite, four kilograms of chemical products and 14 kilowatt hours of electricity.
  • Anything made of aluminium can be recycled repeatedly: not only cans, but aluminium extrusions,aluminium foil, plates,window frames, garden furniture and automotive components are melted down and used to make the same products again. Used aluminium cans can be recycled to make new aluminium cans, aluminium windows can be recycled to make new aluminium windows and old aluminium engine blocks to make new ones. The recycling rate for aluminium cans is already above 70% in some countries.
  • The aluminium industry has set up various schemes to encourage recycling in many countries.
  • Aluminium beverage cans can be profitably recycled by individuals and groups and most countries have a national can recycling association which offers advice, support, and can put collectors in touch with purchasing organisations.
  • Process scrap at all stages is meticulously collected and sorted by alloy by all aluminium companies and most customer organisations. Unlike other metals, scrap aluminium has significant value and commands good market prices. The London Metal exchange quotes aluminium scrap prices.
  • Aluminium companies have invested in dedicated state of the art secondary metal processing plants to recycle aluminium. In the case of beverage cans, the process uses gas collected from burning off the volatile substances in can coatings to provide heat for the process. Every last bit of energy is used.
  • Used beverage cans are normally back on supermarket shelves as new beverage cans in 6-8 weeks in those countries which have dedicated can collecting and recycling schemes.
  • In Europe, the aluminium beverage can meets the minimum targets set in the European directive on Packaging and Waste. Sweden (92 per cent) and Switzerland (88 per cent) are the European can recycling champions. The European average is 40 per cent, a ten per cent increase since 1994.
  • The recycling of aluminium beverage cans eliminates waste. It saves energy, conserves natural resources, reduces use of city landfills and provides added revenue for recyclers, charities and local town government. The aluminium can is therefore good news for the environment and good for the economy.
  • The aluminium can is 100% recyclable; there are no labels or covers to be removed.
  • Today's aluminium can requires about 40% less metal than the can made 25 years ago; hence the need for less energy and less raw material per can.
  • Cans made from aluminium are worth 6 to 20 times more than any other used packaging material.
  • Aluminium is the only packaging material that more than covers the cost of its own collection and processing at recycling centres.
  • Pilot schemes exist in several countries for recycling aluminium foil from packaging materials.
  • The aluminium industry is working with automobile makers to enable cars with aluminium components to be easily dismantled and the scrap sorted and re-used for identical new parts. In most other recycling schemes scrap material is rarely re-used for the same application – it has to be downgraded to an application requiring lesser metallic properties.
  • Recycling rates for building and transport applications range from 60 to 90 per cent in various countries. The metal is re-used in high quality applications.