Process diagram: Aluminium can recycling

The diagram shows how used aluminium cans are recycled, in a cycle with eight stages.

Overall, the process is continuous. Used cans are collected and melted down, and the metal is then made into sheets, which are used to produce new cans that are filled with drinks and eventually collected again. The first three stages prepare the cans, the next three transform the metal, and the last two produce new cans.

First, the cans are gathered from bins and banks. Magnets are then used to separate the steel cans from the aluminium ones, and the aluminium cans are cut into small pieces during shredding. After that, the coatings are burned off in a furnace in the stage of removing paint.

The metal is then melted into liquid aluminium, and it is cast into large ingots.

In the final stages, the ingots are rolled into thin sheets, which are formed into new cans. These cans are filled with drinks, and they are sold. When the cans have been used, they are collected once more, so the process starts again.