 Aluminium

 Chemical Element
 Symbol: Al
 Atomic mass: 26.981539 u ± 8 × 10^-
7u
 Atomic number: 13
 Melting point: 660.3 °C
 Electron configuration: [Ne] 3s23p1
 Boiling point: 2,470 °C
 Discoverer: Hans Christian Ørsted
 The metallic element aluminum is the third most plentiful
element in the earth's crust, comprising 8% of the planet's soil and
rocks (oxygen and silicon make up 47% and 28%, respectively). In
nature, aluminum is found only in chemical compounds with other
elements such as sulfur, silicon, and oxygen. Pure, metallic aluminum
can be economically produced only from aluminum oxide ore.

Metallic aluminum has many properties that make it useful in a

wide range of applications. It is lightweight, strong, nonmagnetic, and
nontoxic. It conducts heat and electricity and reflects heat and light. It
is strong but easily workable, and it retains its strength under extreme
cold without becoming brittle. The surface of aluminum quickly
oxidizes to form an invisible barrier to corrosion. Furthermore,
aluminum can easily and economically be recycled into new products.
 The story of aluminum’s history of use in the U.S. now stretches
over 100 years. The start was a modest one, however. Because of
the complexities of refining aluminum from ore, aluminum was
considered more rare and precious than gold or silver through
most of the 19th century. A pure form of the metal was first
successfully extracted from ore in 1825 by Danish chemist Hans-
Christian. Techniques to produce aluminum in ways modestly
cost-effective emerged in 1889. This lightweight, 100 percent-
recyclable metal has since become a foundation of our country’s
infrastructure. Used in packaging, automotive, energy,
construction, transportation, energy, aerospace and defense
applications, to name a few—aluminum’s impact is so profound
that historians may one day look back on our times and declare
this “The Age of Aluminum.”
 Weight
One of the best known properties of aluminium is that it is light,
with a density one third that of steel, 2,700 kg/m3. The low density of
aluminium accounts for it being lightweight but this does not affect its
strength.

 Strength
Aluminium alloys commonly have tensile strengths of between
70 and 700 MPa. The range for alloys used in extrusion is 150 – 300 MPa.
Unlike most steel grades, aluminium does not become brittle at low
temperatures. Instead, its strength increases. At high temperatures,
aluminium’s strength decreases. At temperatures continuously above
100°C, strength is affected to the extent that the weakening must be taken
into account.
 Linear expansion
Compared with other metals, aluminium has a relatively large
coefficient of linear expansion. This has to be taken into account in some
designs.

 Machining
Aluminium is easily worked using most machining methods – milling,
drilling, cutting, punching, bending, etc. Furthermore, the energy input during
machining is low.

 Formability
Aluminium’s superior malleability is essential for extrusion. With the
metal either hot or cold, this property is also exploited in the rolling of strips and
foils, as well as in bending and other forming operations.

 Conductivity
Aluminium is an excellent conductor of heat and electricity. An
aluminium conductor weighs approximately half as much as a copper conductor
having the same conductivity.
 Joining
Features facilitating easy jointing are often
incorporated into profile design. Fusion welding, Friction Stir
Welding, bonding and taping are also used for joining.

 Reflectivity
Another of the properties of aluminium is that it is a
good reflector of both visible light and radiated heat.

 Screening EMC
Tight aluminium boxes can effectively exclude or
screen off electromagnetic radiation. The better the
conductivity of a material, the better the shielding qualities.
 Corrosion resistance
Aluminium reacts with the oxygen in the air to form an extremely
thin layer of oxide. Though it is only some hundredths of a (my)m thick (1
(my)m is one thousandth of a millimetre), this layer is dense and provides
excellent corrosion protection. The layer is self-repairing if damage
Anodising increases the thickness of the oxide layer and thus
improves the strength of the natural corrosion protection. Where
aluminium is used outdoors, thicknesses of between 15 and 25 ¥ìm
(depending on wear and risk of corrosion) are common.
Aluminium is extremely durable in neutral and slightly acid
environments.
In environments characterised by high acidity or high basicity, corrosion
is rapid.
 Non-magnetic material
Aluminium is a non-magnetic (actually
paramagnetic) material. To avoid interference of
magnetic fields aluminium is often used in magnet X-ray
devices.

 Zero toxicity
After oxygen and silicon, aluminium is the most
common element in the Earth’s crust. Aluminium
compounds also occur naturally in our food.
Advantages and Properties of Aluminum
 Light Weight

Aluminium is a very light metal with a specific weight of 2.7

g/cm3, about a third that of steel. For example, the use of aluminium in
vehicles reduces dead-weight and energy consumption while increasing
load capacity. Its strength can be adapted to the application required by
modifying the composition of its alloys.

 Corrosion Resistance
Aluminium naturally generates a protective oxide coating and is
highly corrosion resistant. Different types of surface treatment such as
anodising, painting or lacquering can further improve this property. It is
particularly useful for applications where protection and conservation are
required.
Advantages and Properties of Aluminum
 Electrical and Thermal Conductivity

Aluminium is an excellent heat and electricity conductor

and in relation to its weight is almost twice as good a conductor as
copper. This has made aluminium the most commonly used
material in major power transmission lines.

 Reflectivity

Aluminium is a good reflector of visible light as well as

heat, and that together with its low weight, makes it an ideal
material for reflectors in, for example, light fittings or rescue
blankets.
Advantages and Properties of Aluminum
 Ductility

Aluminium is ductile and has a low melting point and density. In

a molten condition it can be processed in a number of ways. Its ductility
allows products of aluminium to be basically formed close to the end of
the product’s design.

 Impermeable and Odourless

Aluminium foil, even when it is rolled to only 0.007 mm

thickness, is still completely impermeable and lets neither light aroma
nor taste substances out. Moreover, the metal itself is non-toxic and
releases no aroma or taste substances which makes it ideal for packaging
sensitive products such as food or pharmaceuticals.
Advantages and Properties of Aluminum
 Recyclability

Aluminium is 100 percent recyclable with no

downgrading of its qualities. The re-melting of
aluminium requires little energy: only about 5 percent of
the energy required to produce the primary metal
initially is needed in the recycling process.
Bauxite Mining Crushing Digestion Precipitation

Reduction Electrolytic Alumina

Casting
Process Reduction Production

Primary Foundry Rolling Extrusion

Aluminum Alloys

Aluminum
Recycling
Alloys
 The pure form of Aluminum does not naturally
occur is nature, so remained largely unknown until as
recent as 200 years ago. Creating aluminum using
electricity was first developed in 1886 and is still used to
this day.

1. Bauxite Mining
The aluminum production process
starts with the mining of bauxites, an
aluminum rich mineral in the form
of aluminum hydroxide. About 90% of
global bauxite supply is found in
tropical areas.
 Crushing – Alumina recovery begins by passing the bauxites
through screens to sort it by size. It is then crushed to
produced relatively uniform sized material. These materials is
fed into a large grinding mill where it is mixed with a caustic
soda solution (sodium hydroxide) under high temperature and
pressure.

 Digestion – The ore is loaded into autoclaves and treated with

lime-caustic soda. Aluminum oxide appears in the resulting
slurry while all admixtures settle to the bottom as a red mud.

 Precipitation – The sodium aluminate solution is stirred in

precipitators for several days, eventually pure alumina settles
at the bottom.
2. Alumina Production
Bauxites is crushed, dried and
ground in special mills where it
is mixed with a small amount o
water. This process produces a
thick paste that is collected in
special containers and heated
with steam to remove most of
the silicon present in bauxites.
 Electrolytic Reduction

3. Reduction Process
At an aluminum smelter, alumina is
poured into special reduction cells
with molten cryolite at 950 degree
Celsius. Electric Currents are then
induced in the mixture at 400 kA or
above; this current breaks the bond
between the aluminum and oxygen
atoms resulting in liquid aluminum
settling at the bottom of the
reduction cell.
 Casting

4. Primary Aluminum
Primary Aluminum is cast into
ingots and shipped to customers
or used in the production of
aluminum alloys for various
purposes.
 Foundry Alloys – Foundry aluminum alloys are used to make
finished goods by casting the alloys into special molds. The
required properties are given to the metal adding various
admixtures such as silicon, copper or magnesium. These
alloys are used in the manufacture of automobile and
aviation engines and aluminum alloy wheels.

 Rolling – The malleability of aluminum means it can be

easily rolled into sheets. To that end, aluminum alloys are
cast into rectangular beams up to 9 meters length, these are
then rolled into sheets from which aluminum foil and
beverage cans are made, as well as parts of automobile bodes
and a vast array of other products.
 Extrusion – The process where aluminum is shaped to
its required form. This process is used for making the
vast majority of aluminum products from spectacle
frames, telephone bodies, aeroplane fuselages or
spaceship bodies.

5. Aluminum Alloys
The process where the aluminum
is shaped to its required form. This
process is used for making the vast
majority of aluminum products from
spectacle frames, telephone bodies,
aero plane fuselages or spaceship
bodies.
6. Recycling
Unlike iron, aluminum is
corrosion resistant so it can be
re-melted and reused an infinite
number of times. The added
benefit is that recycling aluminum
requires only 5% of energy needed
to make the same amount of
primary aluminum.
 Recycling aluminum saves more than 90 percent of the
energy needed to make new aluminum.
Recycling aluminum saves more than 90 percent of the
energy that would be needed to create a comparable amount of the
metal from raw materials. Tossing away an aluminum can wastes as
much energy as pouring out half of that can’s volume of gasoline.
Nearly 75 percent of all aluminum produced is still in use today.

 Aluminum can absorb twice the crash energy of steel.

Pound for pound, aluminum absorbs twice the crash energy
of steel and performs as well in an accident. Aluminum crash rails
fold up like an accordion, which dissipates and directs energy away
from the vehicle’s occupants. Aluminum also provides advantages
in stopping distance, handling and performance.
 Aluminum can be merged with special films to create
flexible packaging.
Increasingly, aluminum foil is being merged with
flexible films to create lightweight, flexible packages. This
technology allows the packaging to expand to the shape of
their contents then contract as the product is consumed.

 Aluminum cans contain 3X the recycled content of

glass or plastic.
Aluminum cans contain on average 70 percent
recycled content -- more than 3X the amount in a glass or
plastic bottle. Cans are also recycled at far higher rates than
competing beverage container types.
 Aluminum foil provides a complete barrier to light, oxygen,
moisture and bacteria.
Aluminum foil provides a complete barrier to light, oxygen,
moisture and bacteria. For this reason, foil is used extensively in
food and pharmaceutical packaging. Aluminum foil is also used to
make aseptic packaging. This type of packaging enables storage of
perishable goods without refrigeration.

 Aluminum in automobiles saves 44 million tons of CO2

emissions.
Independent studies have confirmed that aluminum in
automobiles has a 20 percent smaller life cycle CO2 footprint than
steel. And compared with today’s steel cars, a fleet of aluminum
vehicles saves the equivalent of 44 million tons of CO2 emissions.
 Builders have safely used aluminum wiring for more than
40 years.
The National Electrical Code has permitted the use of
aluminum wire since 1901, a mere four years after the first
recognized national electrical code was published in 1897. AA-
8000 aluminum conductors have more than 40 years of reliable
field installations.

 Coated aluminum roofs reflect up to 95 percent of sunlight.

Aluminum is superior to steel and iron in its ability to
reflect the infrared (heat) rays of the sun. Properly coated
aluminum roofs can reflect up to 95 percent of the solar energy
that strikes them, dramatically improving energy efficiency.
Aluminum is a key component in LEED-certified green buildings.
 Nearly 75 percent of all aluminum ever produced
is still in use today.
Infinitely recyclable and highly durable, nearly 75
percent of all aluminum ever produced is still in use
today. Aluminum is 100 percent recyclable and retains its
properties indefinitely. Aluminum is one of the only
materials in the consumer disposal stream that more
than pays for the cost of its own collection.