Light Metal Age (LMA) strives to be at the forefront of the major trends in worldwide aluminum manufacturing. By looking back at the most viewed articles and news stories that we published on our website, we hope to highlighting the major trends and developments from the previous year. In 2025, these stories reveal a distinct interest […]
By Alton Tabereaux, Contributing Editor. The U.S. was once ranked as one of the top primary aluminum producing countries in the world. It grew significantly thanks to the war efforts during World War I in the 1910s and through to the 1940s. Since 1940, there have been 28 different aluminum smelters built in the U.S., […]
By Alton Tabereaux, Contributing Editor. Bauxite residue is an insoluble solid waste by-product generated after the digestion of gibbsitic bauxite ore with sodium hydroxide at elevated temperature and pressure in the Bayer process for the extraction of alumina. During the digestion process, aluminum minerals react with caustic soda process liquor to form soluble sodium aluminate […]
Each year, Light Metal Age (LMA) enjoys looking back at the top ten most viewed news stories that we published on our website, highlighting the trends that have affected the aluminum sector over the previous year. In 2023, these top articles and news stories reveal recent trends and developments, including an interest in advanced technologies for […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
By Alton Tabereaux, Contributing Editor. The largest waste by-product generated in the Bayer bauxite refining process is bauxite residue, commonly called red mud. An enormous quantity of caustic red mud is generated worldwide every year, posing a very serious and alarming environmental and safety problem. The storage of red mud is a challenge for alumina […]
By Alton Tabereaux, Contributing Editor. Production by Country As prices generally increased throughout 2017, world primary aluminum production increased 3.4% compared with the previous year (Table I). China is the world’s largest producer of electrolytic aluminum, making up over half of the global output. The terminal consumption of electrolytic aluminum in China is mainly concentrated in […]
