• Elysis low carbon aluminum ingot

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    Elysis Moves Toward Commercialization of Inert Anodes

    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 molten metal

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    Alcoa Develops New Scrap Purification Process

    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-aluminum smelting pot cell

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    Alcoa to Restart Aluminum Smelting Capacity in Australia and Brazil

    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, […]

  • Elysis

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    Elysis Works to Commercialize Its Carbon Free Aluminum Technology

    Elysis, the joint venture between Rio Tinto and Alcoa, has successfully produced aluminum without any direct greenhouse emissions using its proprietary inert anode technology at its Industrial Research and Development Center in Saguenay, Quebec, Canada. According to the company, this marks a significant milestone in moving toward a full industrial cell design at a size […]

  • Alma smelter - Rio TInto

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    Elysis Began Construction of Its Commercial-Scale Inert Anode Cells

    Elysis, the joint venture company led by Alcoa and Rio Tinto, started construction on the first commercial-scale prototype cells using its proprietary inert anode technology. The demonstration cells are being installed at Rio Tinto’s Alma smelter in Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec. The new technology is said to eliminate all direct greenhouse gases from the aluminum smelting process. […]

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    Searching for a Better Battery: Researchers Consider Aluminum as a Lithium Alternative

    By Andrea Svendsen, Managing Editor. With a growing worldwide focus on sustainability, the automotive industry has been shifting its designs towards more environmentally friendly models. The initial focus was on lightweighting using aluminum, magnesium, higher strength steels, and other materials in order to improve fuel economy. Much of the current attention is now focused on […]

  • Figure 2. Demolition and removal of SPL from an aluminum cell cathode.

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    The SPL Waste Management Challenge in Primary Aluminum

    By Alton Tabereaux, Contributing Editor. Spent potlining (SPL) disposal is one of the largest environmental waste management challenges confronting worldwide primary aluminum smelters due to its toxicity. The International Aluminium Institute (IAI) asserts that 1.6 million tons of SPL were generated from primary aluminum production in 2019,1 making it the second largest waste volume produced […]

  • aluminium scrap

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    REMADE Institute Invests in Sustainability and Recycling Research

    The Reducing EMbodied-Energy And Decreasing Emissions (REMADE) Institute based in Rochester, New York, is investing $43 million in new technology research focused on improving the sustainability of manufacturing operations. Working with industry innovators and academic researchers, the institute selected a total of 24 projects as part of its latest round of funding, including several projects […]

  • Elysis low carbon aluminum ingot

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    Elysis Completes Construction of Industrial R&D Center in Canada

    Elysis, the joint venture between Alcoa and Rio Tinto, completed the construction of its Industrial Research and Development Center in Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Québec, Canada. “We’re proud to have reached this milestone with completing the Industrial Research and Development Center, despite the challenges of 2020 with the global pandemic,” said Vincent Christ, CEO of Elysis. “Commissioning the center will be […]