Podcast: Meeting manufacturers’ demand for recycled aluminum with new, sustainable technologies

Engin Kılınç is a professional engineer with extensive experience in the automotive industry, specializing in aluminum casting operations and recycling technologies. Currently, he serves as the foundry manager at Habaş Group in Kocaeli, Türkiye, overseeing installation, commissioning, and optimization of high-pressure and low-pressure casting machines for passenger vehicle production. He recently wrote an article for Foundry Management & Technology titled “Advances in Aluminum Recycling for Metalcasting.” In this episode of Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast, Robert Brooks, editor in chief of Foundry Management & Technology and American Machinist, shares Engin’s thoughts on how growing demand for aluminum for automotive and aerospace manufacturing is altering the industrial system for recycling those materials.

Below is an excerpt from the podcast:

The recycling of light metals, particularly aluminum from End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs), is crucial due to their high market value and significant demand in the automotive supply chain. Currently, automotive applications account for 40-50% of all aluminum scrap consumption, primarily in the form of castings. This study examines the trends and challenges associated with aluminum recycling in the automotive sector, with a focus on optimizing the reuse of scrap aluminum to meet future demands.

Aluminum is a vital material in automotive manufacturing, offering benefits such as weight reduction and enhanced fuel efficiency. The high consumption of secondary aluminum in automotive applications is driven by the demand for castings that can accommodate higher alloying element specifications.

However, the rising use of wrought aluminum alloys presents a potential challenge: the automotive industry may produce more scrap than it can consume. This excess scrap could flood the market, driving down prices and creating a surplus that must be managed effectively.