Aluminum is one of the light metals with low density and high corrosion resistance. It replaces other materials, such as steel, to manufacture some structures to reduce weight and is a material used in several industrial sectors (packaging, aeronautics, automotive, construction, or machinery). Because aluminum is such a light and corrosion-resistant material, new sources of bauxite, the mineral from which aluminum is extracted, are being sought, and the relevance of recycling aluminum trash is being explored as an alternative to the extraction of new raw materials. If you are looking for a recycling company, you can use one of the directories, such as https://scrapmetalmonster.com/.
The aluminum recycling process
Aluminum can be recovered thanks to the recycling plans after consuming this product. How to recycle aluminum? This is the process followed:
- Aluminum is collected from the recycling containers to be transferred to the recycling plant.
- In the recycling plant, the aluminum is separated by going through different classification phases: 1) Large materials other than aluminum (plasticized paper and plastic) are separated. 2) A magnet separates other materials, such as steel or impurities that are not aluminum. Later, it is passed through a rotating cylinder to continue eliminating other types of materials. 3) An electromagnetic belt transports it for those objects that are not aluminum and escaped from the previous phase.
- The purpose is to remove those heavy metals that would hinder aluminum recycling.
- The aluminum is crushed to create blocks of the same size and weight.
- The aluminum blocks that have been formed are cut and passed through a separator to find any traces of other metals and separate them.
- It is then passed into a furnace to be melted at 780 °C, changing from its solid form to its liquid form.
The liquid aluminum is turned into fresh aluminum blocks or sheets before being altered for new usage. You may be wondering how aluminum cans are recycled, as it is one of the most common aluminum objects in households and one that we can manage for recycling. The cans follow the same process explained above, but in the last phase, the formed aluminum block is heated and pressed until a sheet with a thickness of 2 mm is obtained, which will be rolled, and this aluminum coil is sent to the can factories. Depending on the new user to be given to the aluminum, the last step will be carried out in one way or another.
Where to recycle aluminum?
Where does the aluminum go? Because the container might change shape and color, it relies on each country’s trash management. For example, aluminum is deposited in the yellow container used for plastic containers and light packaging in the USA, such as cans, aluminum trays, metal caps and lids, aerosols, and metal cans. Briks are also deposited in this container because they are largely composed of aluminum and plastic (polyethylene). Therefore, in the USA, aluminum is deposited in a yellow container.
Ideas for recycling aluminum at home
Do you have any suggestions on how we can recycle aluminum at home? To recycle it, we would only have to separate all those aluminum waste or components that may be part of a container. For example, the bricks contain an aluminum sheet, and metal caps can be found in certain glass bottles. Thus, it is critical to separate and recycle these components. After separation, the aluminum trash is transported to the appropriate container based on the nation or location. Of course, we can repurpose metal to find new uses for garbage that we already have.
Some ideas are as follows:
- Make our lampshade or curtain with the rings of the cans.
- We can make a nice jewelry box to store accessories with a large tin can. We would only have to clean the can well, paint it, line it with some type of paper or fabric (lining also the edge), and divide it inside (with thick cardboard or strips of rigid plastic) to have several compartments.
- Using the cans as bird feeders is another good option to reuse this aluminum.
- Make small planters to decorate your home using cans.
What are the significance of metal reduction, reuse, and recycling?
We have mentioned before that aluminum is obtained from a mineral called bauxite, and it is easily found in nature. However, its extraction is really expensive in terms of energy, so it is important to reduce its consumption, reuse it or recycle it since we would be saving approximately 95% of the energy cost needed for its extraction. In addition, this material maintains its properties when recycled and is in great demand because it is so malleable and resistant.
