Scrap Aluminum Recycling Line: The Green Artery of Resource Recycling

Driven by the “dual carbon” goals, scrap aluminum recycling lines have become a core hub of the non-ferrous metal circular economy. Through automated processes, they achieve efficient regeneration of scrap aluminum resources, reducing both the high energy consumption of primary aluminum smelting and solid waste pollution.

A complete scrap aluminum recycling line typically includes seven core stages. First, a pre-treatment system separates impurities such as steel and plastic from the scrap aluminum through manual sorting and magnetic separation equipment, ensuring raw material purity. Next, a crushing stage where a high-speed crusher pulverizes large pieces of scrap aluminum (such as car wheel hubs and building profiles) into 5-10 cm particles, improving subsequent processing efficiency. Then, an eddy current separator uses electromagnetic induction to precisely separate aluminum from other non-magnetic metals, achieving a purity of over 98%.

Cleaning and drying are key quality control steps. A high-pressure spray system uses alkaline cleaning agents to remove oil and coatings from the surface of the aluminum particles, followed by a hot air dryer to control the moisture content below 0.5%, preventing the generation of harmful gases during smelting. The core smelting process utilizes a natural gas-heated tilting furnace, employing refining agents to remove hydrogen and impurities from the molten aluminum. The temperature is strictly controlled between 750-780℃ to ensure stable aluminum quality.

The molten aluminum then enters the casting system, where it is processed into aluminum ingots or rods using a continuous casting machine. These recycled aluminum products can be directly used in the automotive, electronics, and construction industries. Finally, the waste gas treatment system uses bag filters and activated carbon adsorption devices to purify the dust and volatile organic compounds generated during the smelting process, achieving emission standards.

Compared to primary aluminum production, waste aluminum recycling lines can save 14,000 kWh of electricity and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 11 tons per ton. Currently, mainstream recycling lines in China have undergone intelligent upgrades, using PLC control systems to monitor parameters at each stage in real time. Some companies have also introduced AI visual sorting technology to further improve sorting accuracy and production efficiency. With the deepening of waste sorting policies, waste aluminum recycling lines will play a more important role in the resource recycling system, providing stable raw material support for green manufacturing.