MAR 17, 2022
Did you know that recycling aluminum can save energy, save money, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, create new products, create jobs, keep our air and water clean, and even save landfill space? Yes, it's true! Let's discuss the many benefits of scrap metal recycling with RCM Recycling.
Saves Energy
Recycling scrap aluminum does not require as much energy, and the recycling process only requires 5% of the energy needed to make new aluminum. This represents a 95% reduction in energy required to make new aluminum cans.
Saves Money
Recycling aluminum cans help save money as well. Making aluminum from raw materials costs much more than taking already processed material and turning it into another product. Since melting down already processed materials does not require as much effort as starting from scratch, more companies are willing to pay for the recyclables than they would for the raw materials.
The refining of aluminum ore produces greenhouse gases. The United States Environmental Protection Agency reports that greenhouse gases are released when aluminum ore is mined in Brazil and transported to the United States for processing. By recycling aluminum cans, you reduce the need for mining.
Create New Products
The most valuable benefit of recycling aluminum is that it can be reused to create new products repeatedly without diminishing its quality. Recycled aluminum is indistinguishable from aluminum produced directly from bauxite ore, so it has the same properties and the same strength-to-weight ratio.
Creates Jobs
Making new products from recycled material requires significantly fewer resources than creating products from virgin materials. This reduces the need to extract, refine, transport, and process raw materials, reducing costs associated with production positively impacting the economy. Scrap metal buyers can also make a living, or even source as a side gig, recycling aluminum.
Recycling aluminum also keeps air and water clean. The smelting process for producing new aluminum generates sulfur dioxide and other pollutants, which can cause acid rain. And if coal is burned to have the energy needed for smelting, additional pollutants are released into the atmosphere.
Because a large part of aluminum production involves transforming bauxite, a claylike soil found in tropical regions, into aluminum oxide, it creates a lot of pollution that can contaminate air and water.
Saves Landfill Space
Recycled aluminum cans save money by reducing the need for landfill space. A used can that is thrown away will remain in a landfill forever because it will not biodegrade. Recycling helps to save valuable landfill space by removing waste from the equation and using it again for another purpose.
Aluminum recycling isn't just some feel-good measure. It makes sense to recycle aluminum, with its benefits far outweighing any related costs. If you want to minimize your carbon footprint, recycling is the way to go—and aluminum is an excellent material to recycle. It's durable, affordable for companies and individuals, and it can be melted down repeatedly.
If you need scrap metal recycling, contact RCM Recycling today for assistance.
