Get the Most Aluminum From Melting Cans

Summary

In this intriguing video, the host embarks on a project to extract aluminum from soda cans, addressing the common misconceptions about the quality of aluminum from cans. Despite the presence of a plastic liner and the challenges of oxidation during melting, the host demonstrates a method to minimize aluminum loss. Using a crucible, they form a pool of molten aluminum and dunk cans to reduce oxidation. The video also explores the addition of flux to separate impurities and the potential alloying with copper to improve casting and machining properties. The host concludes with tips on enhancing the aluminum's usability and the importance of distinguishing between pure and cast aluminum.

Takeaways

• 🥤 Cans are a common source of aluminum, but the aluminum obtained from them is not of high quality due to the presence of a plastic liner and oxidation issues.
• 🔥 The process of melting cans involves dealing with oxidation that occurs before the aluminum melts, which can reduce the quality of the aluminum obtained.
• 🚮 The plastic liner inside cans prevents the acidic beverage from corroding the aluminum, but it also means that around half the weight of a can is not aluminum.
• 🏺 To minimize loss of aluminum, the process involves creating a pool of liquid aluminum and dunking the cans into it to melt them quickly.
• 🔭 The aluminum from cans is fairly pure but lacks silicon, which is needed to improve its casting and machining properties.
• 🧪 Using a flux, such as Morton's light salt, can help reduce the amount of dross (oxidized aluminum) and improve the purity of the aluminum obtained.
• 🛠️ The video demonstrates a method to purify aluminum from cans by melting them and managing the dross to get a more workable metal.
• 📏 There's a noticeable difference in the appearance and properties between pure aluminum from cans and cast aluminum, with the former being shinier and less dense.
• 🔩 Adding elements like copper to the aluminum can improve its casting and machining properties, making it more suitable for various applications.
• 📊 The video provides a practical demonstration of weighing aluminum and copper to achieve the right proportions for alloying, highlighting the importance of accurate measurements in metallurgy.
• 🎥 The script is from a video that not only instructs on the process but also shares the experimenter's observations and tips for successfully working with aluminum from cans.

Q & A

What is the main issue with using aluminum cans as a source of aluminum?

The main issue with using aluminum cans as a source of aluminum is that the aluminum obtained from them isn't very good due to the presence of a plastic liner and the fact that it oxidizes before it melts, which results in a significant loss of aluminum.

Why is silicon important when melting aluminum from cans?

Silicon is important because it helps to improve the casting and machining properties of the aluminum. The aluminum from cans lacks silicon, making it less desirable for certain applications.

What is the purpose of using a flux when melting aluminum cans?

The purpose of using a flux is to reduce the oxidation of aluminum and to help separate impurities like the plastic liner and dross from the molten aluminum, thus improving the purity and quality of the aluminum obtained.

How does the process of dunking cans into a pool of molten aluminum work?

The process involves melting a piece of aluminum to form a pool, and then dunking aluminum cans into this pool to melt them. This method helps to minimize oxidation and maximize the amount of aluminum salvaged from the cans.

What is the role of the plastic liner inside the cans during the melting process?

The plastic liner inside the cans acts as a barrier to prevent the acidic content of the beverage from corroding the aluminum. However, during the melting process, it becomes part of the dross and reduces the overall aluminum yield.

Why does the video suggest adding copper to the aluminum from cans?

Adding copper to the aluminum from cans is suggested to improve its casting and machining properties. Pure aluminum is soft and not ideal for machining, so copper is added to create an alloy that is stronger and more suitable for these purposes.

How can one determine the percentage of copper to add to the aluminum?

One can determine the percentage of copper to add by calculating the desired total weight of the alloy and then adding the appropriate amount of copper to achieve 5% to 10% of that total weight.

What is dross and why is it a problem during the melting of aluminum cans?

Dross is the impure residue that forms on the surface of molten metal due to oxidation and other impurities. It is a problem because it traps aluminum, reducing the yield of pure aluminum and also because it can contaminate the metal.

How does the aluminum from cans compare to cast aluminum in terms of appearance and properties?

The aluminum from cans is purer and appears shinier compared to cast aluminum, which has a less shiny and dirtier surface. Cast aluminum also exhibits more shrinkage than aluminum from cans.

What is the significance of the non-stick coating burning off in the pan during the pouring process?

The burning off of the non-stick coating indicates that the temperature of the molten aluminum is high enough to damage the pan's coating, which could contaminate the aluminum and also suggests that special care should be taken when choosing containers for pouring molten aluminum.

What is the final step the presenter takes to ensure the aluminum ingots are properly cast?

The final step the presenter takes is to tighten the lid of the crucible after it has expanded due to heat, ensuring a tight seal to contain the aluminum as it cools and solidifies into ingots.

Outlines

00:00

🥤 Melting Aluminum Cans for Recycling

The script discusses the process of melting aluminum cans for recycling purposes. The narrator explains that while cans are a common source of aluminum, the aluminum obtained from them is not of high quality due to the lack of silicon and the presence of a plastic liner. The narrator demonstrates how to melt cans to minimize the loss of aluminum, addressing issues like oxidation and dross formation. The process involves creating a pool of molten aluminum and dunking cans into it to melt them efficiently. The narrator also touches on the idea of adding elemental silicon to improve the quality of the aluminum but decides against it for the time being.

05:01

🔥 Overcoming Challenges in Melting Cans

In this paragraph, the narrator encounters and overcomes challenges while melting cans. The heat from the melting process causes the pole to get hot, and the narrator is cautious about potential fire hazards. They discuss the use of uncrushed cans and the dross problem, which refers to the impurities that form on the surface of the molten aluminum. The narrator uses a flux, Morton light salt, to help separate the aluminum from the dross. They experiment with different amounts of flux and observe the changes in the dross's appearance. The narrator also attempts to pour the molten aluminum into molds, noting the difficulty and the need to avoid losing aluminum to oxidation.

10:02

🏭 Improving Cast Aluminum Quality

The final paragraph focuses on the quality of cast aluminum and ways to improve it. The narrator compares the appearance of purified can ingots to cast aluminum, noting the differences in shine and surface texture. They discuss the issue of shrinkage in cast aluminum and how adding elements like copper can improve its casting and machining properties. The narrator calculates the amount of copper needed to achieve a 5-10% mixture with the aluminum and plans to use small sections of copper pipe for this purpose. The paragraph concludes with the narrator's intention to start casting actual objects and invites viewers to stay tuned for future content.

Keywords

💡Aluminum

Aluminum is a lightweight, silvery-white, soft, non-magnetic, and ductile metal in the boron group. In the video, the creator discusses melting aluminum cans to extract aluminum, which is a common material due to its abundance and properties, but also mentions the challenges of working with it due to its reactivity and the presence of a plastic liner.

💡Oxidation

Oxidation refers to a chemical reaction where a substance loses electrons, often resulting in the formation of an oxide. In the context of the video, oxidation is a problem when melting aluminum because it can lead to the formation of aluminum oxide before the metal melts, which reduces the yield of pure aluminum.

💡Dross

Dross is a layer of waste material that forms on the surface of molten metal, often composed of oxides and other impurities. The video describes efforts to minimize the loss of aluminum to dross during the melting process, as this waste material can trap valuable aluminum that cannot be recovered easily.

💡Flux

Flux is a substance used in metallurgy to remove impurities by promoting their reaction with the flux itself, rather than the metal. In the video, the creator uses Morton light salt as a flux to help remove dross and improve the purity of the molten aluminum.

💡Silicon

Silicon is a chemical element that, when alloyed with aluminum, can improve its mechanical properties. The script mentions that the aluminum from cans lacks silicon, making it less desirable for certain applications. The creator discusses the potential of adding silicon to improve the aluminum's quality.

💡Casting

Casting is a manufacturing process in which a liquid material is usually poured into a mold, which contains a hollow cavity of the desired shape, and then allowed to solidify. The video describes the process of casting aluminum from cans into ingots, highlighting the challenges and techniques involved.

💡Machining

Machining is any of various processes in which a piece of metal is shaped and finished by cutting, drilling, or similar methods. The video mentions that pure aluminum from cans is not ideal for machining due to its softness, and the creator suggests adding copper to improve its machinability.

💡Cruel

A crucible is a container that can withstand high temperatures, often used for melting metals. In the video, the creator uses a crucible to melt the aluminum cans and discusses the importance of managing the heat to prevent the crucible from getting too hot.

💡Plastic liner

The plastic liner mentioned in the video refers to the inner coating of aluminum cans that prevents the acidic content of beverages from reacting with the aluminum. This liner is a challenge when melting cans, as it can contaminate the aluminum and also needs to be dealt with during the melting process.

💡Ingot

An ingot is a piece of relatively pure material, usually metal, that has been cast into a shape suitable for further processing. The video discusses the process of turning aluminum from cans into ingots, which can then be used for various applications, such as machining or further alloying.

💡Shrinkage

Shrinkage in metallurgy refers to the reduction in volume of a metal as it cools and solidifies. The video contrasts the shrinkage of cast aluminum from cans with that of commercially cast aluminum, noting that the former exhibits more shrinkage, which can affect the quality of the final product.

Highlights

Introduction to melting cans for aluminum extraction.

Cans are a common source of aluminum, but the quality of aluminum varies.

Problems with aluminum from cans include oxidation and plastic liners.

The aluminum from cans lacks silicon, which is essential for casting.

Demonstration of melting cans to minimize loss of aluminum.

Using a flux to reduce oxidation and improve aluminum recovery.

The process of creating a pool of molten aluminum for dunking cans.

Technique to dunk cans into the molten aluminum pool to reduce oxidation.

Observation of the dross formation and its impact on aluminum purity.

Using Morton light salt as a flux to improve aluminum extraction.

The importance of fluxing to remove crud and improve aluminum flow.

Pouring aluminum into molds and observing the differences between cast and can aluminum.

Comparison of the appearance and properties of cast aluminum versus aluminum from cans.

The issue of shrinkage in cast aluminum and its implications for casting.

Adding copper to improve the casting and machining properties of aluminum.

Practical advice on how to calculate the amount of copper to add for alloying.

Conclusion and a teaser for future casting projects.

Transcripts

all of this is going to die greetings

today we're going to melt the can we've

got a whole bunch of them and some more

I've heard people say cans are a great

source of aluminum and cans are a

terrible source of aluminum and they're

both true

the problem is cans really common you

can get camps I have tons of them myself

I drink a lot of soda but the aluminum

you get from them isn't very good it's

it's got one main problem no silicon and

a couple more problems to sin when you

melt it you get oxidation before it

melts and also there's a plastic liner

inside the cans it stops this super

acidic terrible for you beverage from

eating away the aluminum so half the

weight or so is like plastic not even

aluminum so I'm going to show you how to

melt it to minimize the loss to minimize

the loss of aluminum the alumina will

get caught up in the dross the crud left

behind so we got to get the most amount

of that aluminum off the dross so we can

save as much we also don't want to lose

it oxidation because once it oxidizes

it's gone forever and then once it's

melted later I'll tell you how to make

it work a little bit better as far as

casting and machining the problem with

the metal is that it's fairly pure cans

are fairly pure extruded aluminum like

heat sinks that's fairly pure sheet

aluminum is usually fairly pure and cast

aluminum like this is not it's got some

silicon in it and I don't mean silicon

like the caulk around your windows I

don't mean silica silicon dioxide which

is like glass and quartz and granite and

Flint to an extent I mean silicon

elemental silicon and I got a piece of

it here see it's kind of glassy but it

also looks like chrome like Chrome glass

so pure metallic elemental silicon

that's what it needs in it I'm not going

to put this in there because this was

sent to me by a guy whose name I didn't

ask if I could say on the internet so

I'm not going to but he's nice

and I'm going to use this later with

some other metals to alloy up from some

bronzes but yeah this is what it needs

and you're not going to add this to the

cans well the story is the metal is not

going out silicon in it so it's not

great

don't worry about that later let's say

we get so here's the deal as the can

melt they're going to oxidize before

they form a pool and that's a problem so

the best way to get rid of that it's a

form of cool first and dunk the aluminum

into the pool or that have to happen you

first need a liquid aluminum pool to

begin with so I got this it's just a

bucket a bucket into which I have put a

bunch of aluminum pieces including this

heat sink which is extruded aluminum

this plate of aluminum and I'm going to

melt one of these first to form the pool

maybe the plate and the and the heat

sink quite thick so it's not that

probably in focus it's not going to

oxidize as much so I'm going to end up

with a pool once I get a pool going

I'll start dunking cans into the pool

and as those build up they will build up

the pool so the pool is deeper and

deeper and deeper so I can dump cans

into it that's the plan now one thing to

remember the old plaster sand lining

it's fairly insulating this one is not I

just started it and the outside is

already over 100 degrees so don't touch

it for the crucible still using the

extinguisher there we do that's good

enough

perfect now that's heating up I'll add

do you think and this plate plate

doesn't fit to the whole plate and let

it burn adds more fuel even more fuel

alright

that isn't charcoal it's bark who are

they kidding alright so satisfied that

it is fueled up enough let's let it rip

on low heat that see the aluminum

smelting already that's way easier than

copper take a peek it's already a puddle

you can still sort of see the shape that

he think but it's pretty much tone

alright can time here's how I'm going to

do it I'm going to throw a can in let it

sizzle for half a second make sure all

the liquid gone I'm going to shove it

into the pool with it and watch it melt

fizzle push into the pool and their

hands gone I'm going to try a couple

more cans at a time

fizzle down into the pool little fire

careful at the fire I already see a flaw

in the system this pole is getting hot

off to the hole isn't big enough for

some of these oddly shaped crush cam

just hoping the fire doesn't alert my

neighbors you know I like uncrushed cam

better I think you can plunge them

really fast so fast my plunging stick is

getting ultra hot now the dross problem

all this crud see it's very aluminum me

and I was told if you keep flexing

eventually the aluminum will get thin

enough that the drop will be mostly pure

it won't have a lot of aluminum trapped

in it I'm going to use Morton light salt

it's half sodium fluoride half the

caffeine chloride I think as a flux

let's try adding in one table for one

teaspoon can my glove back on a toasty

in there and mix

I said mix mix that tablespoon

already the drops look slightly less

aluminum II it looks blacker just try

just a little more I got to get

something to hold this room lift here we

go hold the spoon with channellock

that's safe bill [ __ ] the crap out of

it and here's the drop it looks more

flaky not so aluminum II I still can't

believe that actually worked

Wow a tip with gold

now let's attempt to pour wow this is

heavy heavy and slightly glowy okay then

attempt to pour aluminium ingot burning

off the nonstick coating in the pan next

to aluminum in get I'm not going to fill

these so that's got a lot duncan it next

we want to get I'm not going to fill

these all the way up because I don't

believe I'm going to use huge chunks

like that and maybe need to use a spoon

as a strainer there we go

Lumina mingott I got struck a drop in it

Oh Oh get out of there jerk quit ruining

my metal

Wow there's so much crud in that there's

no more liquid left but I can see I want

to put it back in here try adding some

more flux see if I can extract just a

little bit more out of there like that

in good I think I'm just ending up with

saltier saltier draw I don't know if I'm

going to get any more aluminum in the

aluminum I get is going to be so flux

but the flux does that make the more

liquidy makes a poor easier more flowy

like turning it from syrup into water

kind of see if they got me a little more

a little more material oh it did check

that out some drop selling there but

we'll live anymore being a little bit

poor in yep there we go

all right I think that's about it so

there you go how to get the maximum a

lot of aluminum out of cam cool

know what I'm going to do although

they're cooling his remember how I put

this ring on the lid well it's metal

that it's expanded so I'm going to

tighten it down just so we bit and it

will form tight onto the lid getting a

little more cracking on the lid so in

the comments that I did something wrong

from pouring the concrete and shredded

more than a couple of things wrong but

thank you for the tip it should be

pretty solidified yeah

there we go

well while those are doing that I'm

going to pour out the drop see what kind

of drops I get ooh

ain't that gross look at that it's all

black and crumbly not metallicky at all

that's a good tip from another guy whose

name I did not ask if I could say on the

internet about tons of fluxing to get

all the crud off make sure we're going

to flowy flows off of the drops and you

just end up dish in the drop and not

losing as much aluminum dump this out

aluminum ingots with burned nonstick

coating on them here's a clean one so

here it is a purified can ingot for

reference here is cast aluminum melted

into ingot form see the difference

I don't but still it's important to keep

them separate so I'm going to mark these

ones with peer and these ones those cast

so I don't mix them up in my pile and

now the aftermath the foundry is totally

fine now that didn't have any problems

at all but I ended up with these a can

ingot this is pure luminol like I said

are fairly pure aluminum and it looks

different from cast aluminum previously

cast aluminum which is right here this

is a piece that I did earlier I think

out of washing machine cast aluminum

parts anyway you'll notice it's quite a

bit less shiny and the surface of the

cast piece kind of kind of dirty it and

really cleaned it up seems to have finer

lines in it as opposed to the can looks

kind of crystalline perhaps another

thing notice the shrinkage cast aluminum

cans aluminum much much more shrinkage

probably hard to see the amount of

shrinkage through a video but this one

sinks in the middle maybe like a

sixteenth of an inch or two this one

thinks a full quarter inch here I'll put

like a

great edge or something across so you

look at that look at that sink and then

that not sink so definitely more

shrinkage with the can now how do you

make it cast better

well the silicon is not really something

that's easy to add so you can add copper

multiple people have told me this you

had like 5 or 10% of copper in with that

but you have to you have to do the cams

first in the ingots to get rid of all

the drawers because you don't know how

much aluminum you're actually going to

get now once you get the pure aluminum

you can weigh it using one of these

nifty things that's really loud alright

let's weigh this 180 some things grams

180 grams that's what it said on say

this 167 grams okay now we want to add

like five to ten percent dish of copper

let's see what the copper ingot weighs

649 that's way too much way way too much

I don't know why I cast this really

really big ingot of nasty gross looking

copper but it's really too big so that

was kind of useless I cannot add this

too can aluminum because this we need to

be added to like thirty of those and I

don't have 30 of those or crucible to

handle it so let's check out the small

one the smaller disc 152 that's still

like that's like the weight of this

small one coppers a lot more dense than

aluminum

so what you can add are these things

little sections of pipe 21 grams so 21

grams if that's 5% of something that

means the total is what 400 grams 700 I

don't know probably four on the ground

Emily yes 400 so if I take this that

will be 5% of a total of 400 grams of

finished product which means 20 grams of

this plus 380 grams of that let's see

how many is 380 grams someone check my

math both of these ish close enough that

we'll put that right around 5 to 10% so

that little amount of copper into this

much molten aluminum will help it Cass

bet

a little bit better help it machine

better it won't cast as nicely as cast

aluminum but it will help it a little

bit more because just pure aluminum I

hear is kind of soft and not great for

machining so there you go that's how you

cast can reduce the amount of loss saves

as much aluminum as possible and improve

the alloy a little bit for machining

with something easy to obtain like

copper pipe two copper pipes everywhere

I hope you enjoyed I want to start

casting actual things here pretty soon

so stay tuned

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