Difference between revisions of "Aluminium Federation"

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Although recycling aluminium is indeed 95% more efficient than primary production it still takes the same amount of energy as producing new steel <ref>Das, S. and Padel, F. 2010,'Out of this earth: East India Adivasis and the aluminium cartel' Orient Blackswan </ref>
 
Although recycling aluminium is indeed 95% more efficient than primary production it still takes the same amount of energy as producing new steel <ref>Das, S. and Padel, F. 2010,'Out of this earth: East India Adivasis and the aluminium cartel' Orient Blackswan </ref>
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Major aluminium producer Alcoa sources only 20% of its aluminium from recycling. Overall recycling rates are 33% and, according to US Aluminium Association figures, going down<ref>Institute, C.R., 2006. [http://www.container-recycling.org/images/alum/graphs/recsale-tons-96-06.gif Aluminum can sales and recycling in the US 1996-2006] Accessed 12-12-2008 </ref>.
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Major aluminium producer [[Alcoa]] sources only 20% of its aluminium from recycling. Overall recycling rates are 33% and, according to US [[Aluminium Association]] figures, going down<ref>Institute, C.R., 2006. [http://www.container-recycling.org/images/alum/graphs/recsale-tons-96-06.gif Aluminum can sales and recycling in the US 1996-2006] Accessed 12-12-2008 </ref>.
  
  
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As well as recycling aluminium using the same energy as producing new steel, the primary smelting process is one of the most energy intensive and polluting industrial processes on earth, earning aluminium the title 'solid electricity' in the industry<ref>Switkes, G. 2005. [http://www.internationalrivers.org/en/node/1327 Foiling the aluminum industry: a toolkit for communities, activists, consumers, and workers.] International Rivers, Berkeley, CA. Accessed 02/04/10</ref>. An estimated 5 billion tonnes of bauxite have so far been mined from the earth, creating just less than a billion tonnes of aluminium. If we use Al Fed's figures that 75% are still in use that suggests that around 200,000,000,000 tonnes (200 thousand million tonnes) are currently in landfill and could theoretically be mined and recycled.</ref> <ref>Das, S. and Padel, F. 2010,'Out of this earth: East India Adivasis and the aluminium cartel' Orient Blackswan </ref>
 
As well as recycling aluminium using the same energy as producing new steel, the primary smelting process is one of the most energy intensive and polluting industrial processes on earth, earning aluminium the title 'solid electricity' in the industry<ref>Switkes, G. 2005. [http://www.internationalrivers.org/en/node/1327 Foiling the aluminum industry: a toolkit for communities, activists, consumers, and workers.] International Rivers, Berkeley, CA. Accessed 02/04/10</ref>. An estimated 5 billion tonnes of bauxite have so far been mined from the earth, creating just less than a billion tonnes of aluminium. If we use Al Fed's figures that 75% are still in use that suggests that around 200,000,000,000 tonnes (200 thousand million tonnes) are currently in landfill and could theoretically be mined and recycled.</ref> <ref>Das, S. and Padel, F. 2010,'Out of this earth: East India Adivasis and the aluminium cartel' Orient Blackswan </ref>
  
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Approximately 30% of aluminium is used for arms manufacture and defense<ref>Clapham, M., UK Parliament, House of Commons. 1998. Rio Tinto Corporation. Early day motion 1194.HMSO, London.</ref> <ref>Das, S. and Padel, F. 2010,'Out of this earth: East India Adivasis and the aluminium cartel' Orient Blackswan </ref>. This fact is disguised in industry figures as 'transport' or 'construction' but is evident in aluminium's status as a 'strategic metal' for the UK government, which is stockpiled for military purposes <ref>Anderson, Dewey (1951) Aluminum for Defence and Prosperity. Washington, US Public Affairs Institute.</ref>.  
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Approximately 30% of aluminium is used for arms manufacture and defense<ref>Clapham, M., UK Parliament, House of Commons. 1998. Rio Tinto Corporation. Early day motion 1194.HMSO, London.</ref> <ref>Das, S. and Padel, F. 2010,'Out of this earth: East India Adivasis and the aluminium cartel' Orient Blackswan </ref>. This fact is disguised in industry figures as 'transport' or 'construction' but is evident in aluminium's status as a 'strategic metal' for the US and UK governments, which is stockpiled for military purposes <ref>Anderson, Dewey (1951) Aluminum for Defence and Prosperity. Washington, US Public Affairs Institute.</ref>.  
  
  
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':Electrical power efficiency of primary aluminium smelters worldwide, surveyed by the International Aluminium Institute, improved by 4% between 1990 and 2008.
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':Electrical power efficiency of primary aluminium smelters worldwide, surveyed by the [[International Aluminium Institute]], improved by 4% between 1990 and 2008.
 
:To date, the UK Primary Aluminium Industry has reduced its emissions by 39%, relative to 1990 levels.  
 
:To date, the UK Primary Aluminium Industry has reduced its emissions by 39%, relative to 1990 levels.  
 
:Electricity consumption in primary aluminium smelters has been reduced by one-third since the 1950s and by 7% since 1990.<ref>Aluminium Federation, aluminium A -Z [http://www.alfed.org.uk/page.asp?node=77&sec=A_-_E Letters A to E] Accessed 02/04/10</ref>'
 
:Electricity consumption in primary aluminium smelters has been reduced by one-third since the 1950s and by 7% since 1990.<ref>Aluminium Federation, aluminium A -Z [http://www.alfed.org.uk/page.asp?node=77&sec=A_-_E Letters A to E] Accessed 02/04/10</ref>'

Revision as of 17:00, 6 April 2010

Global warming.jpg This article is part of the Climate project of Spinwatch.

The Aluminium Federation the UK trade association for the aluminium industry, based in West Bromwich. It provides technical support and lobbying services in Westminster and in Brussels on behalf of members ranging from smelting companies, recycling companies and end of line products. [1]

Members Associations


People


Aluminium- green and clean?

Al Fed's website promotes a number of educational and information services to people outside the industry, including 'on-line education material for schools'[4].They are active in publishing and disseminating figures on the benefits of aluminium, especially in terms of its green credentials. These claims center on the issues of recyclability, energy savings from lighter aluminium cars and planes, it's use in 'eco building' and the carbon efficiency of the refining and smelting processes due to technological advances and use of 'renewable energy' for power. Some of these claims are examined in more detail in this section:

According to Al Fed's website:

':The current recycling rate for aluminium drinks cans in the UK is 52% (2008 figure).

The overall recycling rate for all aluminium packaging (including drinks cans, foil, foil containers and aerosols) is 36% (2008 figure).
Recycling aluminium requires only 5% of the original energy required to produce the primary metal.[5]'

Although recycling aluminium is indeed 95% more efficient than primary production it still takes the same amount of energy as producing new steel [6] Major aluminium producer Alcoa sources only 20% of its aluminium from recycling. Overall recycling rates are 33% and, according to US Aluminium Association figures, going down[7].


':Aluminium is an 'energy bank'. 75% of all the aluminium ever produced is still in use today, having been through countless recycling loops of its lifecycle.[8]'

As well as recycling aluminium using the same energy as producing new steel, the primary smelting process is one of the most energy intensive and polluting industrial processes on earth, earning aluminium the title 'solid electricity' in the industry[9]. An estimated 5 billion tonnes of bauxite have so far been mined from the earth, creating just less than a billion tonnes of aluminium. If we use Al Fed's figures that 75% are still in use that suggests that around 200,000,000,000 tonnes (200 thousand million tonnes) are currently in landfill and could theoretically be mined and recycled.</ref> [10]

Approximately 30% of aluminium is used for arms manufacture and defense[11] [12]. This fact is disguised in industry figures as 'transport' or 'construction' but is evident in aluminium's status as a 'strategic metal' for the US and UK governments, which is stockpiled for military purposes [13].


':Electrical power efficiency of primary aluminium smelters worldwide, surveyed by the International Aluminium Institute, improved by 4% between 1990 and 2008.

To date, the UK Primary Aluminium Industry has reduced its emissions by 39%, relative to 1990 levels.
Electricity consumption in primary aluminium smelters has been reduced by one-third since the 1950s and by 7% since 1990.[14]'

Though considerable technological advances have been made aluminium remains a much more carbon intensive metal than other metals, for example steel. Aluminium production accounts for ca. 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions,producing 13.1 tons of CO2 equivalent per ton of aluminium [15]. Technological advances have led to 20-25% emissions savings in the smelting process in recent decades but overall emissions are increasing and there is no concrete intention to reduce them. In fact, Alcoa predicts a 20% increase of CO2e emitted per year from ca.335 million tonnes of CO2e in 2000 to ca. 400 million tonnes in 2020[16].


':Over 50% of aluminium is produced worldwide using clean, renewable, hydro-electric power.[17]'

The aluminium industry has historically been linked to the hydro power industry due to the large, cheap and continuous supply of energy needed to refine and smelt aluminium. Due to the low economic return per energy unit, smelting is increasingly geared towards countries developing with low energy and labour costs, and large and powerful rivers which are less politically sensitive to dam than in the Western world[18]. Hydro power, and particularly the mega hydro projects common for aluminium smelting, have considerable ecological consequences which are particularly well detailed in Patrick McCully's book 'Silenced Rivers: The Ecology and Politics of large dams'[19] These include greenhouse gas emissions from rotting organic matter in reservoirs which are in some cases much higher than for an equivalent gas fired power station [20]. These greenhouse gas emissions and other indirect emissions from hydro are not included in industry audits.


':Every kilogram of aluminium used in a car's manufacture saves 20 kilograms of CO2 emissions over a vehicle's lifetime.[21]'

This figure does not take account of the increase in emissions from primary processing and smelting when substituting aluminium for steel in cars (see above).

Affiliations

Subsidiaries

Publications

Contact details, Resources, Notes

Contact

Aluminium Federation, National Metalforming Centre, 47 Birmingham Road, West Bromwich, West Midlands. B70 6PY

  • Phone:
  • Fax:
  • Website:

External Resources

Notes

  1. ↑ Aluminium Federation homepage Accessed 02/04/10
  2. ↑ Aluminium Federation Our Associations Accessed 02/04/10
  3. ↑ Aluminium Federation Staff Accessed 02/04/10
  4. ↑ Aluminium Federation homepage Accessed 02/04/10
  5. ↑ Aluminium Federation, aluminium A -Z Letters A to E Accessed 02/04/10
  6. ↑ Das, S. and Padel, F. 2010,'Out of this earth: East India Adivasis and the aluminium cartel' Orient Blackswan
  7. ↑ Institute, C.R., 2006. Aluminum can sales and recycling in the US 1996-2006 Accessed 12-12-2008
  8. ↑ Aluminium Federation, aluminium A -Z Letters A to E Accessed 02/04/10
  9. ↑ Switkes, G. 2005. Foiling the aluminum industry: a toolkit for communities, activists, consumers, and workers. International Rivers, Berkeley, CA. Accessed 02/04/10
  10. ↑ Das, S. and Padel, F. 2010,'Out of this earth: East India Adivasis and the aluminium cartel' Orient Blackswan
  11. ↑ Clapham, M., UK Parliament, House of Commons. 1998. Rio Tinto Corporation. Early day motion 1194.HMSO, London.
  12. ↑ Das, S. and Padel, F. 2010,'Out of this earth: East India Adivasis and the aluminium cartel' Orient Blackswan
  13. ↑ Anderson, Dewey (1951) Aluminum for Defence and Prosperity. Washington, US Public Affairs Institute.
  14. ↑ Aluminium Federation, aluminium A -Z Letters A to E Accessed 02/04/10
  15. ↑ Jaap Krater and Miriam Rose, 'Development of Iceland’s geothermal energy potential for aluminium production– a critical analysis',In: Abrahamsky, K. (ed) (2009). Sparking a World-wide Energy Revolution: Social Struggles in the Transition to a Post-Petrol World. AK Press, Edinburgh.
  16. ↑ Overbey, R., 2005. Sustainability, what more should companies do? Alcoa Conference Board Session on Sustainability. Alcoa.Accessed 12-12-2008
  17. ↑ Aluminium Federation, aluminium A -Z Letters A to E Accessed 02/04/10
  18. ↑ Switkes, G. 2005. Foiling the aluminum industry: a toolkit for communities, activists, consumers, and workers. International Rivers, Berkeley, CA. Accessed 02/04/10
  19. ↑ patrick McCully, 2001 'Silenced Rivers: The Ecology and Politics of Large Dams' Zed Books.
  20. ↑ Fearnside,P.M, 2006 'Greenhouse gas emissions from hydro-electric dams: reply to Rosa et al', Climatic Change 75:1-2
  21. ↑ Aluminium Federation, aluminium A -Z Letters A to E Accessed 02/04/10

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