5 Best Metal Materials for Scrap Metal Recycling

14 September 2020

Most tools, devices, and equipment today are typically composed of metal components. And so, whenever their service life ends, the scrap metal recycling industry would strongly encourage people to just send them to the recycling facilities. These facilities would be even willing to give money in exchange for scrap metal products, which shows how committed the industry is towards building and strengthening a sustainable future for both the environment and the people.

Scrap metal recycling has been very helpful to businesses that manufacture products out of metal materials. This recycling process is beneficial for them as it replenishes their needed metal supply without extracting new metal sources. Aside from businesses, scrap metal recycling can also benefit ordinary people and the planet itself since it minimises the amount of waste on landfills, which subsequently help the environment recover from air, land, and water pollution.

To date, there are 5 metal materials that are best for scrap metal recycling.

Steel

Steel is an alloy that has enhanced strength and fracture resistance due to the presence of carbon. Despite being recycled and reprocessed into new metal products, steel does not lose its properties, making it the most recycled material on the planet. Some of the products that are made from steel are metal roofing, steel beams, automotive parts, steel safety barriers, railways, press tools, saws, pipes, cranes, scalpels, and domestic appliances.

Aluminium

Like steel, aluminium also boasts the same durability, tensile strength, and corrosion resistance. This specific material is, however, known for being lightweight which helps it cut overall manufacturing and recycling costs. Aluminium also has excellent electrical and thermal conductivity, making it great for applications that need to transfer heat very quickly. Recycling aluminium can produce tons of materials for making tin cans, foils, kitchen utensils, cart parts, window pieces, gutters, siding, and doors.

Iron

Iron does not have the same corrosion resistance that is present on both steel and aluminium, but it still boasts other defining properties that make it great for the recycling process. Iron is very durable and can resist fire, which makes any product out of this material last for a very long time. Additionally, it can easily resist weather elements such as heavy rain and other severe weather conditions without yielding to their damaging effects. This metal material is typically used in producing pipes, roof sheets, and gas heaters.

Copper

Copper has the best electrical conductivity of any metal, making it usable to applications that need to transfer electricity. With copper, the current of electricity can easily flow due to the material’s small electrical resistance. Aside from electrical conductivity, copper is also known for its thermal conductivity, corrosion resistance, ductility, and non-magnetic properties. Copper is utilised in making pipes, electrical components, and electric wires.

Brass

Brass is a combination of zinc and copper that helps it acquire different properties such as enhanced strength, durability, machinability, wear-resistance, corrosion resistance, and electrical and thermal conductivity. The cost of brass can be expensive due to the presence of copper. However, it can still be recycled since the material is being utilised in a wide variety of products. Some of these products include light fixtures, bathroom fixtures, door handles, keys, and plumbing components.

These five metal materials are typically recycled due to the properties that can be beneficial to different industries and applications. Recycling them will also help the environment get rid of waste products that are still usable and can still be maximised for creating new products.

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