Recycling and Scrap Melting: Energy Consumption

The additional energy required for remelting the processed scrap is a function of the melting furnace’s efficiency. The theoretical energy required to melt pure aluminum is 1.01 MMBtu/ton. Melting efficiencies can vary from 10% to 80%. Preheating of scrap, delaquering, and volatile organic compound incineration are all excellent gas loads.

Equipment
Combustion Technology
Energy Consumption
Process Description
R&D Trends
Energy is consumed both for preparing the scrap to be melted, and for melting the scrap prior to casting into ingots or other intermediate shapes. The energy utilized to prepare the scrap is dependent upon the type of scrap as illustrated in the figure.