Moscow, October 3, 2025 – RUSAL, one of the world's largest aluminium producers, has pioneered a technology for producing high-quality aluminium from scrap by electrolysis. This technology makes it possible to recycle off-grade scrap with impurities into a metal with a record low carbon footprint.
RUSAL has made a revolutionary breakthrough in the reprocessing of aluminium scrap: The company has patented the operations of electrochemical reprocessing by electrolysis of off-grade scrap into a highly pure metal equivalent to primary aluminium of grade P1020 (A7 according to the Russian classification, with the purity higher than 99.7 per cent).
An important issue for the aluminium industry is the reprocessing of contaminated scrap. Conventional reprocessing of scrap with a high content of impurities, e.g. iron and copper, in melting furnaces even after applying the existing treatment methods, leads to downcycling, that is, production of low-grade alloys with a limited scope of application. RUSAL's innovative technology solves this problem by providing a full-fledged closed cycle of metal without losing its quality and the capability of using reprocessed metal in high-tech industries, such as automotive, aerospace and food packaging industries.
The unique design of the pot developed by RUSAL ensures the electrochemical treatment of scrap at low costs and high energy efficiency. The technology converts off-grade scrap (quoted below the LME price) into P1020 aluminium (quoted at the LME price plus the regional premium).
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The technology was successfully demonstrated at prototype pots with the amperage of 500 A and 3 kA. Tests have confirmed the high purity of the product and stable production of aluminium with a purity of over 99.7 per cent, operational stability of the prototypes achieving stable operating cycles lasting 40–45 days, high energy efficiency with about 9 MWh of energy consumed to produce one tonne of aluminium from scrap. For comparison, the most efficient conventional pots consume 12–14 MWh of energy to smelt one tonne of metal from alumina.
The technology is designed, among other, for the reprocessing of post-consumer scrap, which has a zero carbon footprint. In combination with 'green' energy sources (RUSAL uses hydro power plants), the technology makes it possible to produce grade P1020 metal with a carbon footprint of less than 1 tonne of greenhouse gases (full scope). The average full scope carbon footprint of the global aluminium industry is an order of magnitude higher: 14,8 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of metal.
Note: To explore Rusal’s sustainability goals and low-carbon aluminium production plans, don’t miss our upcoming e-Magazine, “Sustainability & Recycling: Aluminium’s Dual Commitment”, where Rusal has shared in-depth insights into its sustainability vision and initiatives.
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