According to SMM survey statistics, the operating rate of the secondary aluminium alloy industry in September was 35.0 per cent, up 3.1 percentage points M-o-M but down 6.7 percentage points Y-o-Y. Industry production continued its recovery trend, but the overall operating level remained below the same period last year. On the demand side, September marked the traditional peak consumption season, with downstream orders recovering from August. End-use demand from automobiles and other sectors improved marginally, but the peak season effect has yet to fully materialise. According to CAAM data, automobile production in September was 2.99 million units, up 11.4 per cent M-o-M but down 8.7 per cent Y-o-Y. NEV production was 1.814 million units, up 12.2 per cent Y-o-Y. CAAM noted that China's...
Europe’s aluminium scrap exports to the US have risen by 243 per cent, highlighting a growing concern over the continent’s access to strategic raw materials as it pursues recycling, decarbonisation and industrial competitiveness. Evangelos Mytilineos, Executive Chairman of METLEN, raised the issue, linking scrap outflows to the broader challenges facing European industry, energy security and strategic autonomy. Aluminium scrap outflows raise industrial concerns Mytilineos referred to the contrasting US tariff treatment of aluminium products, i.e., a 50 per cent tariff on primary aluminium, compared with zero tariff on scrap . With European aluminium scrap exports to the US increasing by 243 per cent, he questioned whether Europe could strengthen its industrial base while allowing valuable...
Grow with
AL Circle
The Jawaharlal Nehru Aluminium Research Development and Design Centre (JNARDDC), Nagpur, has created Poly Aluminium Chloride (PAC) from aluminium dross, a step towards achieving zero waste in the aluminium industrial sector. PAC can be used in water treatment facilities to treat wastewater. Dross, a hazardous waste product of the aluminium industry, may now be recycled using JNARDDC's technology to produce PAC. “The smelting process in the primary aluminium industry generates around 2% to 5% of dross, which is a complete waste. Similarly, in the secondary processing industry, it increases by 5% to 10%, which is again disposed off in landfills,” said Dr Upendra Singh, Senior Principal Scientist and Principal Investigator of the project. According to Dr Anupam Agnihotri, Director of JNARDDC...
ASI was incorporated in 2015, making 2023 the ninth year of our collective journey. We are proud now to number 275 ASI Members across our 6 membership classes. There have been 238 ASI Certificates issued to certifying Members for both Performance and Chain of Custody. But what is the direction and purpose for this increasing scale of implementation? In October 2022, the ASI Board held a full-day workshop to reflect on ASI’s strengths, opportunities, aspirations and desired results and review the existing framework for change as part of ASI’s annual strategy processes. ASI’s new Strategy on a Page below illustrates our ‘theory of change’ – the mechanisms through which we aim to contribute to sustainability-enhancing changes in the aluminium sector. ASI’s four strategic foundations...
As the world faces a climate crisis amidst a shortfall of energy supplies and critical metals, difficult decisions are being made to meet growing supply gaps without risking new dependencies on unsustainable producers or compromising for geopolitical factors. Best resource practices shouldn’t be dictated by current events, but that’s not always simple. A hard lesson being learned in the aluminium industry with the effects of short-term thinking has been felt. In addition to the increases in inflation, energy cost rise and supply shortfalls, we have seen the EU import ban on Russian oil, the USA’s proposal for a potential 200% tariff on Russian aluminium, European production closures (see below), and more scrutiny than ever on ESG credentials for investment. European Production Closures...
Leading grain refiner specialist MQP – which is set to present new technical research at TMS 2023 in the US this month – has committed to the advancement of sustainable manufacturing by making the production of its super-efficient Optifine 5:1 125 a ‘closed loop’ process. John Courtenay, Chairman and CEO, MQP The award-winning British company is now not only producing its 125% efficiency grain refiner with low carbon aluminium but is recycling customers’ scrap to make the cost-saving product – which customers can then buy back and improve their sustainable roadmap. MQP chairman John Courtenay, who will be presenting the pioneering research behind Optifine 5:1 125’s incredibly high efficiency at TMS, said: “Making vehicles lighter and creating electrical infrastructure and solar panels,...
UACJ, the Japanese manufacturer of aluminium products and Toyo Seikan Group Holdings had concluded a business alliance agreement to collaboratively research strategies for advancing the horizontal recycling of aluminium cans. With this partnership, they aim to use the technology and expertise of both firms to produce and market aluminium cans with increased environmental value. Also, both businesses will think about working together on initiatives to encourage collecting and recycling old aluminium cans along the whole value chain to promote further "CAN to CAN" horizontal aluminium can recycling . Japanese beverage cans made of aluminium have a high recycling rate of 97 per cent. However, the most recent assessment revealed that fewer than 60 per cent of the can's body and lid are made...
The United States aluminium scrap imports from Mexico dropped by 2,400 tonnes or 15.58 per cent month-on-month, standing at 13,000 tonnes during November 2022, found the US Geological Survey. In October 2022, the country’s import from Mexico was 15,400 tonnes; however, up by 8.45 per cent or 1,200 tonnes from 14,200 tonnes. On a year-on-year calculation, the United States aluminium scrap imports from Mexico slowed down by 15.58 per cent or 2,400 tonnes from 15,400 tonnes. But despite the year-on-year fall in monthly imports, the United States total imports of aluminium scrap from Mexico during January-November grew by 2,000 tonnes to 192,000 tonnes, compared with 190,000 tonnes a year ago. USGS data indicates the United States aluminium scrap imports from Mexico will most likely record a...
For Ontario soda users who prefer canned to bottled pop, grocery expenses are set to increase even more, if only marginally, this spring. As per reports, starting from April 1, a group backed by some of Canada's biggest food and beverage companies" will begin charging residents of the province a new recycling fee, touted as the pop can tax or the Container Recycling Fee (CRF). Consumers will start paying a fee of one cent on aluminium cans , two cents on small PET plastic bottles, and three cents on all other sealed, ready-to-drink non-alcoholic beverage containers in April under the CBCRA's proposed proposal. That covers everything from tetra packs to water in boxes to tomato juice in steel cans. The Canadian Beverage Container Recycling Association (CBCRA), an industry-funded...
India’s aluminium scrap imports from the United States have been falling through the past three months to reach as low as 28,800 tonnes in November 2022 versus 40,800 tonnes in October, according to the US Census Bureau data. That was a month-on-month decline of 12,000 tonnes or 29.41 per cent in India’s aluminium scrap imports from the US during November. The imports in October also fell from the previous month, although slower, by 1,000 tonnes or 2.39 per cent from 41,800 tonnes. On a year-on-year calculation, India’s aluminium scrap imports from the US during November 2022 edged a sharp downfall of 20,100 tonnes or 41.10 per cent from 48,900 tonnes. Given the slowdown in India’s aluminium scrap imports from the United States since the last three months of 2022, the total volume of...
The South Korean multinational manufacturing conglomerate, Samsung ’s flag-bearer product line and when it comes to a trustworthy premium android experience, Samsung Galaxy S series has redefined the peak performance for millions. Galaxy S23 lovers are swooning over the recently-launched series like never before. The 200MP Adaptive Pixel sensor on the Galaxy S23 Ultra captures spectacular moments with amazing precision. To handle many levels of high-resolution processing concurrently, it uses pixel binning. The Galaxy S23 series incorporates rapid autofocus and the first Super HDR selfie camera, moving from 30fps to 60fps, for considerably superior front-facing photos and movies. Selfie cameras are now more crucial than ever to how we interact. The gadget is also environmentally friendly....
After the Paris Environmental Act of 2015, all the major aluminium consuming regions on the planet are finding ways to increase the use of recycled aluminium. RUSAL, Russia’s giant producer of aluminium has decided to process end-of-life aluminium or scrap aluminium into foundry alloys so that they can be used in the automobile industry. This has helped in tanking 20 per cent of the carbon emissions usually produced. Hydro has posted about making post-consumer aluminium scrap ingots in its Wrexham plant in UK opening almost 30 new job opportunities. Cans4City has been successful in raising over £10,000 with Exeter City Football Club (ECFC) and Exeter City Council by recycling used aluminium beverage cans. With its headquarters in Düsseldorf, Germany, Lindemann Metal Recycling has been...
The governments of Corona and Irvine have partnered with 'Recycle From Home' to offer citizens of the two cities with pick-up-services for California Refund Value (CA CRV) containers. CA CRV or CRV is the amount customers receive when they recycle aluminium or other metal beverage containers at authorised recycling facilities. The minimum return amount for each type of suitable beverage container is set at 5 cents for containers under 24 ounces and 10 cents for containers 24 ounces or larger. Residents may separate CA CRV aluminium cans, plastic bottles, and glass bottles using collecting bags and barcode tracking labels provided by Recycle From Home and then schedule a pick-up online. "As long as it stays "CA CRV" on the container, we'll pay you for them," stated Recycle From Home. The...
The 11th iteration of Unimed's 'Eu Ajudo na Lata' (I Help in the Can) campaign was launched in Londrina, Brazil. The campaign, now in its eleventh year, collects aluminium seals that are later sold and whose values are used to buy wheelchairs. 14,000 kg of aluminium can seals has been collected throughout the campaign. This allowed for the purchase of 205 chairs, distributed to 74 institutions and helped more than 50,000 people. "The work is big, but when this is shared with our community, the action becomes very viable. That's why we count on everyone's collaboration", said Isabela Moreno, Sustainability assistant at Unimed Londrina. Schools, businesses, clients, and regular individuals deliver aluminium seals to Unimed Londrina service stations after collecting them from various...
According to a recent report, Hydro has planned to initiate the production of remelt aluminium scrap ingot at Wrexham plant, UK, to increase the recycling of post-consumer scrap. This project will take the company closer to its sustainability drive by enabling it to offer more low-carbon aluminium to its European customers. Ingrid Guddal, Head of Recycling in Hydro Aluminium Metal, said: “We see increasing interest from forward leaning customers across Europe to buy Hydro’s low-carbon aluminium, particularly within the automotive, transport, and buildings and construction segments.” Hydro’s new investment in producing remelt scrap ingot will increase its recycling capacity to around 103,000 tonnes per annum, letting it process and recycle a wider range of post-consumer aluminium scrap....
The Russian aluminium giant and one of the leading producers of aluminium in the world, RUSAL, initiated using end-of-life aluminium scrap to produce foundry alloys for the automotive industry. RUSAL reduced the new product's total carbon footprint by nearly 20 per cent due to this production. Rusal's Primary Equivalent Foundry Alloys (PEFA) contains 20 per cent of aluminium scrap, which is added to the molten aluminium during production. The Company plans to expand production of PEFA during the second half of 2023 and increase the recycled content up to 30 per cent. The new product is in complete alignment with OEMs requirements, meeting the need for a low carbon footprint and recycled content. This product will address the strategic requirements linked to carbon neutrality commitments...
With its headquarters in Düsseldorf, Germany, Lindemann Metal Recycling has been doing business in Brazil since the 1970s. As per the latest reports, the global manufacturer of machinery and solution provider for scrap processing, including aluminium, has appointed Tainá Rodrigues as its new Commercial Relations manager for its operations in Brazil. Tainá will work as a prospector in the metal recycling sector and provide customer assistance. She was chosen as the new Commercial Relations manager by the Brazilian subsidiary of the German multinational company Lindemann, which sells metal recycling equipment domestically and throughout South America. "My goal is to make the brand increasingly consolidated, which is why I seek to add value both to Lindemann and to our customers, who are the...
The Exeter City Football Club (ECFC) and Exeter City Council’s constructive recycling programme, Cans4City, has achieved a major goal of raising more than £10,000 in exchange for the used beverage cans turned in. The raised fund will be diverted towards drives and initiatives propagated by the football club and its allied charity house, the Exeter City Community Trust (ECCT). Throughout recent years, the Cans4City team has successfully collected approximately 12.5 tonnes of aluminium packaging – equating to 700,000 cans in volume. This extensive drive has aided the refugee team of Exeter United with countless football kits, a mental health camp for the ECFC Academy, alongside the acquisition of a defibrillator for Cliff Hill training ground. The recycling drive has also been crucial for...
The recycled aluminium sector is the most prominent budding department in the industry. This week, Italy-based Inca Packaging vouched to introduce new packaging variables for 2023 using sustainable design ideas focusing mainly on recycled aluminium. The District Council of Oregon has charged Hydro Extrusions USA for air pollution its facilities cause around the area, and the Norwegian aluminium head has pleaded guilty. Sweden’s Stena Aluminium, the leading producer of recycled aluminium, has been approached by the country’s electric performance car company, Polestar for materialising the Polestar 0 Project with raw materials from the former. Lastly, there was news about Finnish recycled aluminium producer Kuusakoski Group Oy spending 25 M€ for a new production line housed at the recycling...
Artificial Intelligence (AI)-equipped waste management robotics firm, Recycleye, has gathered US$17 million in funding during its recent financial drive. Sorting various waste materials is extremely vital for a smooth recycling process. Recycleye optimises AI-run waste-extracting robots to reduce the cost of sorting material waste. The technology applies the smartness of a computer and high-end robotics to clasp and sort the materials without any hindrance. With the AI protocol, the robot “sees” waste and has been formatted to pick materials like plastics, paper, cardboard and aluminium in a never-ending cycle. Among all the mentioned waste materials, aluminium has the potential to be infinitely recycled without losing its original properties. Moreover, recycling aluminium releases lesser...
