Industry Overview
The United States' aluminum industry is the world's largest, annually producing about $39.1 billion in products and exports. U.S. companies are the largest single producer of primary aluminum.
The U.S. industry operates over 300 plants in 35 states, produces more than 23 billion pounds of metal annually and employs over 145,000 people with an annual payroll of about $5 billion. Aluminum is one of the few products and industries left in America that truly impacts every community in the country, either through physical plants and facilities, recycling, heavy industry, or consumption of consumer goods.
In terms of both its positive economic and environmental impact, the aluminum industry remains one of our most significant national and international success stories.
Aluminum Markets
Top markets for the industry are transportation, beverage cans and other packaging, and building construction.
In fact, in 1994, transportation first emerged as the largest market for aluminum, at about one-quarter of the market, with passenger cars accounting for the vast majority of the growth. That trend has continued each subsequent year.
Transportation
The aluminum industry's performance is noteworthy, particularly in light of the proliferation of alternative materials and global competition. Transportation represents the largest market for aluminum in the United States. Automotive and light truck applications accounted for almost 5.2 billion pounds of aluminum in 2000, or about one fifth of industry shipments. Aluminum intensive automobiles include the Audi A8, with its aluminum body, aluminum front and rear axle, and numerous other aluminum components; the Honda Insight with its aluminum monocoque body and an aluminum alloy in-line 3 cylinder engine: and the Lincoln LS, featuring a sheet aluminum hood, deck lid and front fender, and forged aluminum wheels.
In 2000, transportation accounted for 32.5 percent of all US shipments. That same year aluminum passed plastic--with average content of 257 lbs per vehicle--to become the third most-used material in automobiles. Automakers are increasingly choosing aluminum to improve fuel economy, reduce emissions and enhance vehicle performance.
Packaging
In 2000, containers and packaging ranked second to transportation with 20.4 percent of the market, thanks to shipments of 4,992 millions of pounds in products such as beverage cans, food containers, and household and institutional foil. Product producers and consumers are increasingly using foil because it has numerous applications.
Building and Construction
Largely due to products in the residential, industrial, commercial, farm, and highway sectors, the 1999 building and construction market accounted for 3,237 millions of pounds of net shipments, good for 13.1 percent of total shipments and the third largest domestic market for aluminum.
Aluminum Products
From Metal Processing to Fabrication and Components
Aluminum Processing
Aluminum originates as an oxide called alumina, and because aluminum itself does not occur in nature as a metal, the processing of aluminum took a giant leap forward with the advent of electricity.
Deposits of bauxite ore are mined and refined into alumina--one of the feedstocks for aluminum metal. Then alumina and electricity are combined in a cell with a molten electrolyte called cryolite. Direct current electricity is passed from a consumable carbon anode into the cryolite, splitting the aluminum oxide into molten aluminum metal and carbon dioxide.
The molten aluminum collects at the bottom of the cell and is periodically "tapped" into a crucible and cast into ingots. While continual progress has been made over the more than 110-year history of aluminum processing to reduce the amount of electricity used, there are currently no viable alternatives to the electrometallurgical process.
However, between materials recovery and ongoing innovative research and development efforts, the aluminum industry is constantly searching for areas where energy and costs can be reduced. In the past two decades, the energy efficiency of the production of metal has improved by about 20 percent.
Metal Supply
The United States aluminum supply is comprised of three basic sources:
- Primary (domestic production from ore material)
- Imports (of primary and secondary ingot and mill products) and
- Recycled (metal recovered from scrap, also known as secondary recovery)
In 2000, the nation's total aluminum supply was 10.69 million metric tones, a decrease of 4.1 percent from 1999. Since 1990 the nation's total supply has expanded at an average rate of 3.4 percent annually. In 2000, primary production increased to 34.3 percent of total supply, imports rose to 33.5 percent, while secondary recovery accounted for 32.2 percent.
2000 Changes versus 1999
- Primary Production -2.9%
- Imports, Ingot -6.2%
- Imports, Mill Products +7.6
- Secondary Recycled Recovery -6.6%
Fabricated Products
Castings
The automotive industry is the largest market for aluminum castings and cast products make up more than half of the aluminum used in cars. Cast aluminum transmission housing and pistons have been virtually universal in cars and trucks throughout the world for years.
Extrusions
To many designers and materials specifiers, extruded aluminum is the material of choice for countless applications. Experts chose aluminum proflies because extrusion offers so many design options: various alloys can be readily formed into complex shapes; extrusion tooling is inexpensive; lead times for custom shapes or prototypes are relatively brief; many different finishes are available; and the life cycle value of the product remains high due to aluminum's recyclability.
Mill Products
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Other Aluminum Fabricated Products
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Issues Facing the Industry
Government Policy
Trade
International trade is a vitally important to the health of the aluminum industry and the industry has generated success both at home and abroad. Exports account for 11.4 percent of total shipments, with Canada and Mexico being among the industry's largest partners.
Energy
At an annual sum of more than $2 billion, the aluminum industry is a major industrial user of electricity. Since the electrolytic process is the only commercially proven method of producing aluminum, the industry has on its own pursued opportunities to reduce its use of electricity. In the last 50 years, the average amount of electricity needed to make a pound of aluminum has been slashed from 12 kilowatt hours to about 7 kilowatt hours.
Environment and Climate Change
From the environmental perspective, the aluminum industry also is a leader in the preservation of natural resources. Total aluminum industry supply in 2001 was 10.69 million metric tons, 33 percent of which was recycled aluminum. Of the 101 billion aluminum cans shipped in 2000, 62.1 percent (63 billion) were recycled. Almost 90 percent of automotive aluminum is reclaimed and recycled. Recycling of aluminum saves energy and removes some 95 percent of emissions association with making new aluminum from ore.
Recycling
The role of recycling in the aluminum industry cannot be overstated. Recycling is a critical component of the industry, both from its contributions to the environment and because of the favorable economic impact on production. This dual benefit is probably the reason aluminum beverage cans now account for virtually all of the beverage can market, and most of the total single-serve beverage market.
Yet again, the contribution of recycling has had a positive impact on the industry with energy savings brought about with the increased proportion of recycled metal as a resource. For instance, the energy used to produce aluminum is saved for future re-use through recycling. Recycling saves almost 95 percent of the energy needed to produce aluminum from its original source, bauxite ore.
As the use of aluminum has grown, the industry has become a pioneer in the field of recycling, earning worldwide recognition as a leader in materials recovery. In fact, as of 2000, over one third of the total U.S. aluminum supply is provided through recycling. Clearly, the aluminum industry's commitment to recyclable resources is a major factor both in the industry's growth and improved living environments for communities across the country. Aluminum in autos accounts for 5-to-10 percent of scrapped automobiles by weight, but represents 30-to-50 percent of its scrap value.
Today, aluminum is the most commonly recycled post-consumer metal in the world.
Technology
The aluminum industry employs the latest technology to make the process of refining bauxite ore and reducing alumina to aluminum more efficient and energy saving. Through its partnership with the Department of Energy, The Aluminum Association is vigorously working to help the industry make greater gains in reducing energy consumption. Under their "Industries of the Future" program, there are a variety of ongoing technology projects and activities. The Aluminum Association, acting on belhalf of the industry, has completed a series of vision and technology roadmap documents. These roadmaps have defined energy and environmental performance targets, identified technology barriers, and recommended areas of technology that are ripe for precompetitive, collaborative efforts between the industry government and academia. In addition to a generic industry technology roadmap, others have been developed releating to advanced electrode technology for smelting and fabrication technology specific to the automotive markets.
Increased use of aluminum in transportation applications and elsewhere also have significantly reduced energy and fuel consumption and reduced carbon dioxide emissions.
Pollution Prevention
In pollution prevention, the key word is "prevention" because the aluminum industry has strategically administered its pollution control efforts to actively address environmental issues. The track record is one that brings us great pride. The history, and success, of the aluminum industry is based on its ability to promote energy conservation and waste reduction within the industry itself and among American consumers.
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