Getting a clean, smooth finish while removing material quickly is not always easy when machining high-strength aluminium alloys. A new study on AA7075-T6 aluminium alloy has explored this challenge, identifying two different sets of drilling conditions to improve surface quality and maximise machining productivity. The research examined how cutting speed, feed rate and drill depth influence conventional drilling performance. Using response surface methodology and a central composite design, the researchers developed predictive models to determine how changes in these parameters affect the machining process. The models showed a strong level of accuracy, with coefficients of determination (R²) reaching 0.9731 for surface roughness and 0.9359 for material removal rate. Further confirmation...
Cleaner aluminium depends on three things going right at once: scrap collection, melting it in a furnace without much carbon, and the electricity behind the whole chain not being coal-powered. Developments across North America, the UK, the European Union (EU), Egypt, Thailand, Malaysia and India depict how unevenly those pieces are falling into place. While some markets are losing recoverable metal at the sorting line, others are redirecting cargoes or writing scrap into industrial policy, and a few are lining up green projects to hold primary aluminium production together. Aluminium scrap trade: North America leads, Thailand bans, EU retains The international aluminium scrap market is facing a combination of changing trade flows and growing pressure to secure cleaner, more consistent...
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Shanxi Huaxing Aluminum Co. has commissioned high-temperature Digestion line for Bayer alumina production. The line will have the capability of processing 1 million tonnes of diasporic bauxite per year, the largest in the world. Chinese companies are also investing in alumina projects around the world to secure the supply of this prime raw material for its smelters. Jiuquan Iron & Steel (Group) Co. has bought Jamaica’s Alpart alumina refinery which will restart production commercially very soon. According to SMM, aluminium prices will remain in upward track if China steps up capacity cuts and environmental crackdowns. Growing environmental pressure has forced many smelters in Henan and Shandong provinces to close lifting aluminium prices from RMB 14,000 /tonne to about RMB 16,000 /tonne....
LME aluminium remained buoyed up, unchanged for two consecutive days ahead of the weekend. The light metal contract closed at US$2,113.50 per tonne on Friday, September 1, showing a clear uptrend through its day’s performance. Shanghai Metals Market (SMM) suggests that LME aluminium will continue to rise further to US$2,130-2,155 per tonne on Monday, September 4, as China is mulling intensifying its aluminium smelter capacity cuts and environmental checks. The green metal hit the highest last Friday (since February 2013) due to bullish trends in other base metals and a drop in the US dollar index. According to SMM, the upward momentum will extend over the short term. As on September 1, LME official bid price of aluminium stands at US$2,113 per tonne, offer price is US$2,113.50 per tonne,...
RMW, the leading community for waste, energy, recycling and water sectors for networking and trading, is set to organize this year’s edition of Exhibition amid much fanfare. The UK’s leading aluminium recycling trade bodies Alupro, Resource Association, and The Alliance Beverage Cartons and the Environment UK (ACE), have joined forces for the event scheduled for opening on September 12, 2017. The three-day exhibition will see the most influential waste and resource trade associations and aluminium recyclers of UK thronging NEC Birmingham and gaining insight into the sector’s recycling and reprocessing capability, capacity and industry challenges. The UK has made remarkable progress in aluminium recycling in the recent years. In 2016, the country’s total collection of recovered aluminium...
The downstream aluminium sector has shown remarkable developments in the field of expansion, product shipments, acquisition and innovation in the week gone by. A few major companies have signed new deals or announced plans of expansion or acquisition. The moves indicate a bullish aluminium market globally. The price rise in aluminium driven by China’s capacity cut announcements has already generated enthusiasm among aluminium producers and product manufacturers. Here is a look back into the top newsmakers from the last week: China Zhongwang acquires Germany’s Aluminiumwerk Unna Zhongwang Aluminium Deutschland GmbH, a subsidiary of China Zhongwang Holding Ltd., a manufacturer and developer of aluminium extrusion products, has acquired Aluminiumwerk Unna AG (Alunna) in August 2017. After...
SMM observes that there is a good chance of prebaked anode supply shortfall during winter heating season. Environmental inspections have caused tightness in supply of calcined petroleum coke, the raw material for anode. The shortage has also caused calcined coke prices to go up steadily sending ripple effects to prebaked anode prices. SMM also says that Weiqiao Group is still negotiating with prebaked anode suppliers over prices for delivery in September. The price will probably be set at 420 yuan/tonne, much higher than the previously expected market price of RMB200/tonne. Higher prices of prebaked anode are expected to keep aluminium prices strong in the near and long term.
Reynaers Aluminium Romania, a manufacturer of architectural aluminium products has relocated its operations to the logistic center in the south part of Bucharest, Romania and plans to open a showroom in the center of the capital in 2018. The logistic center of Reynaers Romania is approximately 2000 sqm in size the site will open a showroom from this August to display the newest aluminium solutions and accessories in 3D sections. The site will also house the administrative offices, the training and testing center and also its storage room. The logistic center was commissioned at the end of 2015 with an investment of approximately EUR 1 million. Commenting on the relocation, Daniel Popa, country manager at Reynaers Aluminium Romania said, “We have been offering durable solutions of...
The Louvre Abu Dhabi museum, which is scheduled to complete by the end of 2017 is located on an archipelago off Saadiyat Island, a man-made island of the coast of the United Arab Emirates capital Abu Dhabi. The latest images of the museum that have been shared on Twitter by French Ambassador to the UAE Ludovic Pouille ahead of the building's completion are mesmerising people from all around the world. The photographs capture the most striking feature of French architect Jean Nouvel's design – a huge domed roof that measures 180 meters in diameter and made of painstakingly crafted huge aluminium stars. Workers clipped aluminium extrusion panels together to form the complex 'stars' to clad the Louvre Abu Dhabi's dome. The fabrication was done at a plant in Musaffah, Abu Dhabi, the same...
Anil Agarwal, chairman of Vedanta Resources, the metal and mining conglomerate has announced his plans to invest around INR 50,000 crore on business expansion in India in the next few years. "I have promised the government that the group will invest Rs 40,000-50,000 crore. My shareholders and my banks abroad would be very pleased with my plan," he said. He also hopes the taxation issues between Cairns India and the Government will also be sorted soon. He insisted that this decade is the best period to invest in India. He is of the view that the new bankruptcy law and Goods and Services Tax (GST) will help improve the business environment and attract global investors to India. The Income-Tax Department has seized USD 104 million dividend due to Cairn Energy Plc from the remaining stake in...
Prebaked Carbon Anodes are a particular type of consumable electrodes (anodes) designed for aluminium smelting through the Hall-Héroult process. During the smelting process, these carbon anodes are suspended within the electrolysis cell(s) containing the electrolyte, which is primarily aluminium oxide (Al2O3). In the process, prebaked anode is consumed at a rate of approximately 450 kg of anode per tonne of liquid aluminium produced. With the demand for aluminium rising across a wide cross-section of industries, prebaked anode prices have been trending high over the last three years. Talking about market, China has emerged as the global giant in the aluminium sector; and hence, one of the key driving forces for prebaked anode demand and prices. Shanghai Metals Market observed that...
Gravita India, one of the largest non-ferrous metal producers in India, announced increased net profit and revenue for the Q1FY18. The improved revenue was due to the addition of new aluminium business and other added capacity. The company’s Q1FY18 consolidated net profit increased 47.3 percent to INR 10.9 crore, from INR 7.4 crore a year ago. Gravita India’s revenue soared 46 per cent to INR 201.5 crore in Q1FY18, from INR 138 crore year-on year. Consolidated EBITDA was at INR 18.9 crore, from INR 11.1 crore year-on-year and consolidated EBITDA Margin was at 10 per cent from 8.4 per cent year-on year. Gravita has state-of-the-art nonferrous metals processing unit .The company carry out smelting of lead ore / lead concentrate / lead battery scrap and aluminium scrap to produce secondary...
According to sources close to the company, Aditya Birla Group is currently looking at growing its aluminium operations overseas by evaluating possible bids for Constellium NV and Aleris Corp. The Indian billionaire Kumar Mangalam Birla is seriously evaluating such possibilities though the group hasn’t yet decided on proceeding with an offer for either of these two businesses. Sources also say that the conglomerate might pursue an acquisition through Novelis Inc., a subsidiary of Birla’s Mumbai-listed Hindalco Industries Ltd. “Hindalco successfully managed to turn around Novelis, which was once considered a white elephant,” Sanjiv Bhasin, an executive vice president at local brokerage India Infoline Ltd., said. “The way forward in the U.S., especially with an expectation of Trump...
India’s Navaratna public sector enterprise and leading integrated aluminium producer National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) has expanded its value added products portfolio with the launch of AA 3105 Alloy Fan Blade stock. The superior value added rolled product can be used for a wide range of applications. Dr. Tapan Kumar Chand, CMD of the company said, “With this product, NALCO will be widening its base in value added products and also be an active partner in the Make in India movement. This value-added product will strengthen the NALCO’s product mix and cater to the requirements of customers.” In July this year, the company announced that they had started the production of the alloy at its rolling plant in the smelter division. The first consignment of this product was flagged off...
The board of Vedanta Limited has on Thursday announced the appointment of Kuldip Kaura as the interim chief executive officer from September 1, 2017 as former CEO Tom Albanese steps down on August 31. In the meantime the search for a new CEO is going on. Kaura has held various senior management and leadership roles with the group for 15 years by virtue of which "he has extensive knowledge of Vedanta’s operations", the release said. "On behalf of the board and my colleagues at Vedanta, I thank Tom for his significant contribution to the business and wish him all the best for his future endeavours. Kuldip has the full support of the board and the management team and I am certain that he will ensure a smooth transition as we identify a permanent CEO." chairman, Vedanta, Navin Agarwal said....
Rio Tinto has completed the sale of its wholly-owned subsidiary Coal & Allied Industries Limited to Yancoal Australia Limited. From today, Yancoal takes over management of Rio Tinto’s thermal coal business in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales. Rio Tinto will receive total consideration of $2.69 billion for the sale, together with customary adjustments for net debt and net working capital at completion. The $2.69 billion comprises $2.45 billion in cash paid today and a further $240 million of unconditional guaranteed royalty payments. The first royalty payment of $10 million was made today and an additional $100 million will be received by the end of this year. A further $90 million is expected before the end of 2018. Under the terms of the sale, Rio Tinto may also receive an...
Malaysia has always been a net exporter of metal scrap. Aluminium scrap constitutes a significant percentage of its exports earning revenues from the international market. A three-year data snapshot shows a fairly stable aluminium scrap export growth trend by the country looking to grow through the export-driven route. In 2015, Malaysia exported 30845 tonnes of aluminium scrap, which decreased to reach 28497 tonnes last year. This year, by December end, the South-east Asian country is estimated to raise its aluminium scrap export volume by 17.5 per cent year-on-year to 3,3507 tonnes. Malaysia’s aluminium scrap export revenue is also set to rise in 2017. Estimates show that the value of aluminium scarp export will reach US$61 million this year, up from US$43.4 million in 2016. In 2015,...
According to a recent press release from European Aluminium Foil Association (EAFA), aluminium foil deliveries for the period April to June 2017 remains flat YoY. Total domestic deliveries of all gauges increased only 0.2% in comparison to the same period of 2016, and exports dropped by 1%. The association however is optimistic about improvement in trading activities. The association sees the gains made at the end of 2016 are consolidating during the first half of 2017. Total production increased 1.2% to 454,400t in comparison to 449,100t in the same period of 2016. The increase in thinner gauges, used in flexible packaging and household foils, was 1.6% and increase in thicker gauges, used for semi-rigid containers and technical applications stood at 0.3%. Commenting on the results, newly...
Altech Chemicals Limited, aiming to become one of the world's leading suppliers of 99.99% (4N) high purity alumina (HPA), has announced that the Western Australia (WA) Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) has granted works approval on 25 August 2017 for the construction of kaolin screening and loading facility at Meckering, Western Australia. This facility would provide feedstock to its proposed Malaysian high purity alumina (HPA) processing plant. This approval would allow the company to start construction and mining operations at Meckering. The works include ROM stockpile, evaporation pond, trommel screening unit, and loading facility. The company previously received mining approval by the WA Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) (formerly...
In a landmark move to strengthen Australia’s trade and commerce relations with India, a 20-member delegation representing Australian Mining Equipment Technologies and Solutions (METS) recently visited India to explore opportunities to offer their technologies and services for the country's mining sector. The visit was a part of the ongoing Australia Business Week in India 2017 (ABWI) organised by the Australian Trade & Investment Commission (Austrade). The event also saw the Australian Government setting up the Australia India Centre of Excellence for Mining Training in the Indian School of Mines and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Dhanbad, in partnership with the two premiere institutes. The centre will train engineers, executives, and technicians on mining operations with a focus...
