Material Use and Recycling—Approach
Alcoa is the largest and most fully integrated aluminum company, which means that we have the capabilities to extract raw materials, process them into aluminum, convert the metal into end-use products or make them available to others for further processing, and recycle aluminum products at the end of their useful life.
Aluminum is manufactured by a process of electrolysis that separates the raw material, alumina (Al2O3), into aluminum and oxygen. The alumina is dissolved in a cryolite bath to be electrolysed at a lower temperature. The electric current passes into the cell by means of carbon electrodes. The basic process requires approximately four tons of bauxite to produce two tons of aluminum oxide, which, in combination with one-half ton of carbon, can produce one ton of aluminum metal. Once produced, the metal can be used for a wide variety of products. Because it does not rust, decay, or lose its quality, it can be recycled repeatedly without loss of properties. We are aware of the importance of materials flow throughout the economies of the world, and we recognize the need to make efficient use of all raw materials and natural assets. We believe that there is economic as well as stewardship justification for minimizing material flows, and we continue our work to make all of our processes as efficient as possible.
The activities of Alcoa Canada Primary Metals in Québec focus on the production of primary aluminum, and most of the electricity used for production is hydroelectric. The main raw materials used in the process are coal tar pitch and petroleum coke (used to make carbon anodes), carbon cathodes, alumina, cryolite, aluminum fluoride and various alloy metals.
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Manufacturing Aluminum
Learn about the environmental aspects of the process
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