Net-Zero: How is Aluminium Working Towards an Electric Future?
Aluminium is the second most used metal globally, second only to iron; so it goes without saying that this metal will be playing a key role in our world when it comes to working towards an electric future.
Due to its use in products and services that will be in??our lives for centuries to come, aluminium recycling is crucial to the future of Earth. From electric cars, to aircrafts, to the very infrastructure that society lives in, aluminium recycling needs to be a priority for everyone in the relevant industries.?
What is Aluminium???
Aluminium is a lightweight, durable and extremely efficient metal used in a wide variety of industries - transport 25%, construction 25%, electrical equipment and machinery and much more.? The main benefit of the metal, however, is the fact that it is technically infinitely recyclable, meaning there is no limit on how many times this metal can be recycled whilst maintaining its original integrity. Aluminium is predominantly sourced from the rock named Bauxite , a sedimentary rock that has a high aluminium content.?
Why is aluminium the metal for the future?
As aluminium is one of the rare materials that is infinitely recyclable, it means that if we can establish a process of renewable electricity scrap metal recycling, it could be almost a completely carbon neutral process. It is used heavily in vehicle production, especially in electric car manufacturing, further emphasising its use in a green environment. The surge of electric car popularity means that the demand for aluminium is at an all time high. In fact, demand for aluminium for electric cars will hit near 10 million tonnes by 2030. Meaning that aluminium recycling is a necessity for our environment now more than ever.
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The Process
Very quickly, we need to establish what primary and secondary aluminium is. Primary aluminium is aluminium mined directly from the ore, whereas secondary aluminium is aluminium that has gone through the scrap metal recycling process. It is important to distinguish the two for further reading.
If the industry can finally crack the code of creating an almost fully renewable electric method of aluminium recycling, we could infinitely recycle this material with almost no environmental impact. Currently, producing primary aluminium is highly energy intensive due to the? process of extracting alumina from bauxite and turning it into pure aluminium.??Even though the industry is trying to take steps to make this process more energy efficient, using secondary aluminium would be much more beneficial to the environment due to reduction in fossil fuels etc. That is why anyone with any aluminium lying around should head to their local scrap metal recycling yard.
So, why is aluminium recycling so important?
It's no exaggeration to say that aluminium recycling is going to, or at least should, play a role in the battle to save Earth in the future, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t start right now.??