The Aluminium Industry

324 Pages·2001·19.238 MB·English

by  James R. King (Auth.)

The aluminium
industry
James F King
WOODHEAD PUBLISHING LIMITED
Cambridge, England
Published by Woodhead Publishing Limited,
80 High Street, Sawston, Cambridge CB22 3HJ, UK
www.woodheadpublishing.com
First published 2001, Woodhead Publishing Limited
© Woodhead Publishing Limited, 2001
The author has asserted his moral rights
This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources.
Reprinted material is quoted with permission, and sources are indicated. Reasonable
efforts have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the authors and the
publishers cannot assume responsibility for the validity of all materials. Neither the
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 978-1-85573-151-6 (print)
ISBN 978-1-85573-876-8 (online)
Printed by RR Donnei ley, Cambridgeshire, UK
About the author
James King received a first class honours degree in Economics from
the University of Cambridge, England in 1967 and joined the Bank of
England. After eight years working on regional economic and
industrial development for governments and private consultancies
in the UK and Canada, in 1978 Mr King joined Commodities Research
Unit Ltd, London as Research Director for steel and aluminium.
Since 1980 Mr King has been an independent consultant,
specialising in the economic and commercial aspects of the
aluminium and steel industries. Services include regular, in-depth
reports on these industries and special consultancy projects for clients
around the world.
© Woodhead Publishing Ltd About the author/page i
Introduction
This book is part of a series produced by Woodhead Publishing Ltd,
intended to present the key features of the major metals industries.
Designed for the non-specialist reader, these books describe the main
aspects of each metal - history, technology, applications, production,
marketing and pricing. They will be of interest to:
• professionals whose businesses participate in, supply or buy
from any part of the aluminium industry;
• members of the financial community with investment interest in
the metals or raw materials industries;
• scientists or engineers who need an overview of the structure and
commercial operation of the aluminium industry; and
• the general reader needing to understand how an important
metals industry works.
The series is presented in a loose-leaf format, so that updated
information can be published more frequently than is possible with
other formats.
Each of these metals and their associated industries has its
unique features, but they all inspire a similar fascination. They
demonstrate the ingenuity of man in extracting utility and value from
apparently worthless rocks and establishing patterns of commerce
that stretch seamlessly around the globe and underpin the economic
prosperity of the twenty-first century. Although the extraction of some
of these metals is as old as civilisation, the industries never stop
moving with the times and are currently in the forefront of the
development of large-scale internet trading.
This book covers the aluminium industry. Chapter 1 defines
aluminium and provides a brief history of its discovery and
development. Chapters 2 and 3 cover the key raw materials for
aluminium production: bauxite and alumina. Chapter 4 deals with the
processes used to produce aluminium metal, technical trends, costs of
production and pricing of primary aluminium. Chapter 5 assesses the
role of recycled aluminium metal. Chapter 6 discusses the production
of downstream producers. Chapter 7 reviews demand, and the main
applications for aluminium products today. Chapter 8 considers
© Woodhead Publishing Ltd Introduction/page i
introduction
supply: the organisation of production, international trade and
corporate structures. The final chapter identifies some key issues that
will determine the industry's future.
Statistical tables are included throughout the text, and larger
appendices that support the text are included at the end. Throughout
the report the statistical information presented has been developed by
the author from a wide range of published and private sources. Where
the source of the statistics is directly from a single source this is
identified, but in the other cases the author takes responsibility for the
information presented.
All units used are metric. Volumes of production and the like are
usually in metric tons (tonnes). One tonne = 1000 kilograms = 2204.6
pounds. The widely used abbreviation tpy means tonnes per year. The
currency of the international aluminium industry is generally the US
dollar, and values or prices are usually expressed in US dollars per
unit.
Throughout the text the British spelling 'aluminium' rather than
the American spelling 'aluminum' is used, except when referring to
company names. This does not imply that we believe the apocryphal
story that the word aluminum only arose because of a printing
mistake by the dominant American company in the early days of the
industry. The story went that such was the dominance of the company
at the time that it was easier to change the name of the metal than to
reprint the literature.
Particular thanks are due to Mr Angus MacMillan. Although
obliged by other commitments to withdraw as an author, Angus
generously contributed material that has been included in various
sections of the book. His contribution is much appreciated.
Introduction/page ii © Woodhead Publishing Ltd
Abbreviations
AAAC All-Aluminium Alloy Conductors
AACSR Aluminium Alloy Conductor, Steel Reinforced
AC alternating current
ACAR Aluminium Conductor, Alloy Reinforced
ACSR Aluminium Conductor, Steel Reinforced
AGC automatic gauge control
AIV aluminium-intensive vehicle
Alcasa Aluminio del Caroni SA
Alpart Alumina Partners of Jamaica
Alumar Alumino do Maranhao SA
AMP Australian Mutual Provident
AOS Aluminium Oxid Stade
Arco Atlantic Richfield Co.
ARP Alcan Realised Price
ASV A/S Ardai og Sunndal Verk
ATH aluminium trihydrate
AWP Alcan World Price
BACO British Aluminium Company Ltd
Bauxiven CVG Bauxita Venezolana
BICC BICC pic, formerly British Insulated Callenders Cables
BNA Bonneville Power Administration
CAFE Corporate Average Fuel Economy
CBG Compagnie des Bauxites de Guinée
CIS Commonwealth of Independent States
Comalco Comalco Ltd., formerly Commonwealth Aluminium
Corporation Pty Ltd
Conalco Consolidated Aluminum Corporation
CR cold-rolled
CRA Cozinc Rio Tinto Australia
CVG Compania Venezolana de Guayana
CW centre-worked
DC direct chill (a method of casting aluminium ingot)
direct current (form of electric current)
DWI drawn and wall-ironed cans
dwt deadweight tons
© Woodhead Publishing Ltd Abbreviations/page i
Abbreviations
EAA European Aluminium Association
EC electrical conductor
EdF Electricité de France
ELV end-of-life vehicles
EU European Union
FOB free on board
GDP gross domestic product
HAW Hamburger Aluminiumwerke
HR hot-rolled
HS horizontal studs
IAI see IPAI
IBA International Bauxite Association
IDC Industrial Development Corporation
Indal Indian Aluminium Company Ltd
IPAI International Primary Aluminium Institute (renamed in
2000 as International Aluminium Institute)
ISAL Icelandic Aluminium Company Ltd
kA kiloAmperes
KAE Kaiser Aluminium Europe
Kapal Kaiser-Preussag Aluminium
KNHS Koninklijke Nederlandsche Hoogovens en Staalfabrieken NV
LME London Metal Exchange
LOI loss on ignition
MN MegaNewtons
MRN Mineraçao Rio do Norte
NACO A/S Norsk Aluminium Co.
NAFTA North American Free Trade Area
NLM Nippon Light Metal
Nymex New York Mercantile Exchange
OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development
PAC poly-aluminium chloride
PB prebaked
PF point-feeding
PFA primary foundry alloy
QAL Queensland Aluminium Ltd
RCS rigid container sheet
RSI remelt scrap ingot
RTZ Rio Tinto pie, formerly Rio Tinto Zinc Corporation
Abbreviations/page ii © Woodhead Publishing Ltd
Abbreviations
SAKO Svenska Aluminiumkompaniet
SAPA Skandinaviska Aluminium Profiler AB
SAVA Alluminio Veneto SpA
SBK Société des Bauxites de Kindia
SFA secondary foundry alloy
Sorai Sor-Norge Aluminium Co.
SW side-worked
tlf tons locking force
tpy tons per year
UBC used beverage can
USAA US Aluminium Association
VAW Vereinigte Aluminium-Werke AG
Venalum Venezolana de Aluminio SA
VS vertical studs
WMC Western Mining Corporation
© Woodhead Publishing Ltd Abbreviations/page Hi
Index
abrasives, 2/5 Aneka Tambang, 2/26
activated alumina, 3/1, 3/5 annealing, 6/18
activated bauxite, 2/3 anode, 4/17, 4/18
aerosol cans, 6/22 anodising, 6/13, 6/15
Albras, 3/9 angle of repose, 3/17
Alcan, 1/3, 3/3, 3/9, 3/10, 3/34, 3/37, AOS - Aluminium Oxid Stade, 8/53
4/40, 4/41, 4/45, 4/48, 4/50, 6/24, argon, 4/3, 4/4
6/28,6/32,7/11,8/17-8/29 Aroaima, 2/26
Alcan World Price, 4/49 artificial ageing, 6/14
Alcasa, 8/47 aseptic packaging, 6/21, 7/20, 7/23
Alcoa, 1/3, 2/18, 2/29, 3/3, 3/9, 3/10, ASV, 8/41,8/42
3/25, 3/28, 3/37, 3/39, 4/4, 4/29, attrition, 3/16, 3/17, 3/19, 3/24
4/41, 4/45, 4/48, 6/24, 6/28, 6/32, Austria Metall, 4/46
7/14,8/6-8/17
Algroup, see Alusuisse backwardation, 4/52
Alpart - Alumina Partners of Jamaica, bauxite, 2/1-29
8/51 Bauxiven, 8/48
alpha alumina, 3/15 Bayer, Karl, 1/3, 3/21, 3/25, 3/30, 3/31
ALPUR, 4/4 Berthier, P, 2/1
Aluchem, 3/11 beryllium, 6/4
alum, see aluminium sulphate beverage can, 5/4, 5/7, 5/19, 5/20, 6/20,
Alumar, 8/40 6/22, 6/23, 7/1, 7/20, 7/21
Alumax, 4/45, 4/46, 8/9 billet, 1/4, 4/3, 4/5, 4/9, 4/11, 4/17, 5/4,
Alumix, 4/46, 8/9 5/5, 5/20
alumina, 3/1-41,4/18 Billiton, 3/9, 4/48, 8/39-41
alumina hydrate, see alumina trihydrate bismuth, 6/4
alumina trihydrate, 3/1, 3/21, 3/24 boehmite, 2/1, 2/12, 2/13
aluminium alloy, 5/21, 6/9 Boké, 2/16, 2/18, 2/28, 3/12
aluminium chloride, 3/2, 3/3 boron, 3/14, 4/4, 6/4
aluminium fluoride, 3/2, 3/3, 3/12,4/21, BPU Reynolds, 8/32
4/35 British Alcan Aluminium, 4/49, 8/45
aluminium hydroxide, see alumina British Aluminium, 8/16, 8/18, 8/22,
trihydrate 8/39
Aluminium Industrie, 8/54
aluminium intensive vehicle, 7/11 cable, 6/29, 6/31
aluminium oxide, see alumina calcined bauxite, 2/4
aluminium sulphate, 3/2, 9/1 calciners, 3/14, 3/15, 3/24, 3/25, 3/37
alunite, 3/25 calcium, 3/11, 4/4
Alunorte, 3/9, 3/34 calcium aluminate, 3/6
Alusaf, 4/40, 8/39 calcium carbonate, 3/6
Alusuisse, 3/10, 3/34, 3/37, 3/39, 4/41, Caprai, 8/19
4/45, 4/48, 6/24, 8/2, 8/55-58 carbon, 2/14, 2/16, 4/3
Alzheimer's Disease, 9/1 castings, 1/4, 4/8, 6/9, 6/33
American National Can, 8/35 cathode block, 4/39
© Woodhead Publishing Ltd Index/page i
Index
caustic soda, 2/12, 2/13, 3/1, 3/21, 3/23, forging, 6/28
3/25, 3/28, 3/29, 3/30 foundry ingot, 4/6
CBG, 2/26, 2/28 free moisture, 2/15
cell life, 4/24, 4/37 fréons, 4/2
cement, 1/1, 2/3, 2/4, 2/11, 3/6, 3/28 fused alumina, 2/5, 3/6, 3/7
Century Aluminum, 8/36, 8/38
chemical-grade bauxite, 2/3 Gencor, 8/39
chlorine, 3/30, 4/3, 4/4 General Motors, 7/16
coal tar pitch, 3/41, 4/18, 4/34 Gerald Metals, 4/48
cold rolling mill, 4/8, 6/18 gibbsite, see trihydrate bauxite
Comalco, see Rio Tinto Glencore, 4/48
Comex, 4/52 Gove, 2/16, 2/18, 2/26
conductivity, 6/13 Grace, W.R., 3/3
contango, 4/52 grain refining, 4/4
continuous-cast strip, 4/2, 4/6, 4/7, 4/8, Granges, 4/46, 8/50
5/8, 6/16 granulometry, 3/15, 3/16
converted foil, 6/23 graphite, 4/17
corrosion, 1/1 gravity die casting, 6/33
copper, 5/9, 6/3, 6/13, 7/2, 7/23
Corns, 4/46, 4/48, 6/21, 6/28, 8/2, Hall, 1/3,4/16, 7/1,8/6
8/58-59 Harvey Aluminum, 8/42
cryolite, 1/3, 3/3, 3/12, 4/21, 4/34 heat treatment, 6/13
CVG, 8/46-47 Henkel, 3/3
CVRD, 8/39 Heroult, 1/3,4/17,7/1
high purity aluminium, 6/5
Davis, Arthur Vining, 8/6 Hindustan Aluminium - Hindalco, 8/19,
Davy, Sir Humphrey, 1/12 8/49
DC casting, see direct chill homogenising, 4/2, 4/7, 6/14
Defense Logistics Agency, 2/11 Hoogovens, see Corus
degassing, 4/4 hot metal, 4/7
Degussa, 3/3 hot rolling mill, 4/8, 4/11, 6/16
density, 6/11 Howmet, 8/36, 8/38
deoxidation, 5/10 Hydro Aluminium, 3/39, 6/24, 6/28,
diaspore, 2/1, 2/11, 2/12, 2/13 6/32,7/14,8/19,8/41-44
direct chill casting machine, 4/2,4/4, 4/6 hydrogen, 4/2, 4/3, 4/4
dross, 4/3, 4/39, 5/10, 5/11
Dubai Aluminium, 6/5 Icelandic Aluminium Company, 8/56
ductility, 1/1, 1/12 impact extrusion, 6/20, 6/22
inert anode, 4/29
electrolyte, 4/17, 4/18 Inespal, 8/9
Elkem, 8/8, 8/9 ingot premium, 4/52, 4/53
Eurallumina, 8/45 in-line flotation, 4/3, 4/4
European Aluminium Association, 5/6 Interalumina, 3/35, 8/47
extrusion, 4/9, 6/25 International Aluminium Institute, 3/31,
extrusion ingot, see billet 4/26
International Bauxite Association, 2/11
filtration, 4/3, 4/4 International Primary Aluminium
fin stock, 6/20, 6/21 Institute, see International
fire retardant, 3/3, 3/4 Aluminium Institute
floury alumina, 3/16, 3/17, 3/18, 3/26 internet, i
fluorine, 3/12 investment casting, 6/33
foU, 5/10, 6/18, 6/21, 6/31, 7/20, 7/23 iron, 1/1, 2/4, 2/14, 2/16, 2/17, 2/21,
Ford Motor, 7/16 3/12, 3/21, 5/9, 5/10, 6/3, 7/2
Index/page ii © Woodhead Publishing Ltd