Aluminium

Smelting is the industrial way to produce pure primary aluminium from alumina (aluminium oxide). It involves a chemical reduction reaction under which the strong chemical bond between the aluminium and oxygen atoms is destroyed with the use of electrical energy. The smelting process takes place in a purpose-built cell called electrolytic pot. During smelting, alumina is dissolved in a molten cryolite bath, which creates a conductive environment at a temperature of 950^oC, and powerful current is directed to the pot. The aluminum produced is deposited at the bottom of the cell, while oxygen is released into the atmosphere. The liquid metal is collected and transferred to the Casthouse where it is purified, alloyed to specification and then casted into billets, slabs and ingots.

Carbon- electrodes known as anodes constitute a key element of the electrolytic pot. Anodes are immersed in the cryolite bath where alumina melts and act as electrical conductor through which the current directed to the pot goes through. During electrolysis, the carbon element of the anode reacts with the released oxygen of the aluminium oxide, and forms CO₂ resulting in their consumption of the anode. For the production of 1 ton of aluminium, approximately 400 kg anodes ton are required.  To ensure the continuous operation of the potline, anodes are regularly substituted with new ones.

The molten aluminium is poured into mixing furnaces to produce billets, slabs and T-ingots. In the furnaces various metals (manganese, iron, chromium, titanium etc.) are also added to the aluminium, to bring its chemical composition up to customer specifications.

Aiming at minimizing our environmental footprint, in ALUMINIUM of GREECE we have increased our capacity in producing high quality aluminium alloys using recycled aluminium coming from postindustrial recycling metal scrap. Producing aluminum from recycled metal saves more than 90 percent of the energy needed for primary production and additionally reduces the natural resources used to make primary aluminum. This way we show our commitment to circular economy and sustainability.