By Alton Tabereaux, Contributing Editor. Sixty-eight million tonnes of primary aluminum were produced worldwide in smelters in 2021. According to the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI), the aluminum sector was directly responsible for 275 million tonnes of CO2 emissions in 2021, a 2% increase over the previous year. If the indirect emissions from electricity are included, the […]
Under a new partnership, Rio Tinto plans to provide responsibly sourced aluminum to the BMW Group’s vehicle production plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina, for use in body components beginning in 2024. Low-carbon primary aluminum from Rio Tinto’s hydro-powered operations in Canada, combined with recycled content, could generate a reduction of up to 70% in CO2 […]
By Rose Eaton, Light Metal Age. The aluminum canoe has its place in the hearts of many Americans, who enjoyed childhood summers on rivers or lakes, paddles clanging against the warm metal boat, soaking up the rays of the sun. If they ever wondered why the canoes were made of aluminum, it was partially due […]
By Alton Tabereaux, Contributing Editor. The European primary aluminum industry has been deeply impacted by surging energy prices. This is due to a combination of factors, including increasing demand, skyrocketing natural gas prices, and insufficient quantities of affordable renewable (wind, solar, hydro) or nuclear energy. The invasion of Ukraine also significantly impacted supply chains, in […]
Alcoa Corporation completed the installation of upgraded energy infrastructure at its Deschambault aluminum smelter in Quebec, Canada. The $47 million capital investment project is expected to improve stability, increase efficiency, and boost production at the smelter. “Through continuous improvement, we have been able to economically increase the capabilities of many of our assets,” said John […]
ELYSIS, the joint venture between Alcoa and Rio Tinto, is strengthening its ties with Apple. The company has produced the first commercial-purity primary aluminum at industrial scale, which will be used in Apple products. The breakthrough technology produces oxygen instead of greenhouse gases (GHGs), and the achievement marks a major milestone in the production of […]
By Andrea Svendsen, Managing Editor. Elysis, the joint venture formed by Alcoa and Rio Tinto, is making great strides toward the commercialization of its proprietary inert anode technology, which is said to be able to produce aluminum without any direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This would help to meet the primary aluminum industry’s need to […]
Alcoa has developed a new, patented process for the purification of post-consumer aluminum scrap. This ASTREA™ process is designed to process low quality scrap (such as zorba, which is comprised of shredded aluminum and other nonferrous metals from automobiles) into an extremely high purity level equivalent to or surpassing P0101 aluminum alloys (containing only 0.1% […]
Alcoa Corporation plans to restart curtailed capacity at its smelters in Australia and Brazil. In addition to restarting capacity, the company is working to improve the sustainability of the sites by increasing the use of renewable energy. Portland, Australia Alcoa plans to restart 35,000 tonnes of capacity per year, which had been idled in 2009, […]
