Recycling – Shanghai Metal Corporation

SM(ART) RECYCLING : JAPANESE ARTIST TRANSFORMS ALUMINUM BEER CANS TO POP ART

How would you react if you knew someone who drinks beer, takes the aluminum cans then transforms it into art ?

Well this japanese artist, MACAON is the kind of person who does this kind of thing. From basic and used aluminum materials he imitates well known characters like Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story, Gundam robots, Pikachu and even a cool mask of Dark Vader !

The fun thing about this artist is that most of his works are imitations of already famous characters which allows a wider understanding and appreciation from the public’s point of view. Although each of this figure doesn’t represent a deep meaning, the message that Macaon transmits, directly or indirectly, is to wake up the collective consciousness of recycling ; as the world consumes more, it is in our best interest to stop wasting basic materials and start thinking new strategies as to reusing them better. We live in world where beer cans can be transformed into your favorite cartoon, movie or animated character.

As you can see, aluminum beer cans here are reused in a sophistic way and are not wasted. Without basic and flexible material like aluminum, consuming society like ours would have difficulties to satisfy our needs. Simple gestures like recycling aluminum cans can lead to a better future and that is what Macaon’s creativeness can influence to later generations.

It’s amazing how a common material like aluminum can have different types of uses. That is exactly what Shanghai Metal Corporation can provide you !

As representatives of the metal industry, Shanghai Metal Corporation is one of the leading businesses in the manufacturing of metal quality products in the global field. As a major producer of aluminum, stainless steel, copper, shipping containers and other metal products and service, we essentially are committed to the universal use that metal can offer by delivering overseas and promoting environmental sustainability.

To know more about our company please visit our website. Also follow us on Twitter,Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram. You can also download our new mobile application by scanning the QR code below.

#AddingValueAcrossTheGlobe

Maria // SMC Editor

Aluminum, Metal of choice for sustainable cans

the Aluminum Association and Can Manufacturers Institute (CMI) new report states that aluminum cans are the most recycled beverage containers in the market, they have the highest recycling rate. A can usually contains 70% of recycled content, which is 3 times more than plastic or glass containers all this while being around 300 percent more valuable than other materials. A can is generally turned into a new can and back on store shelves within 60 days.
In addition aluminum cans have become lighter by 38 percent since 1972 in the United States, with a weight of 12.99 grams approximately. Aluminum cans are more than 15 times lighter than standard 12 oz. glass bottles, which makes it easier to transport bigger quantities of beverage and optimizing their transportation costs.

An Aluminum can goes through several steps during its life span from one recycling process to a new one

Stage 1 : Can Shredding

In this step cans are shredded into pieces the size of a walnut. The shreds are then passed through a double magnetic drum separator to remove any steel that may have been mixed into the bale.

Stage 2 : De-coating

Any paint or other chemical coating on the aluminum is removed by blowing hot air (around 550°C) through the shreds on a slowly moving insulated conveyor. The exhaust gases from this process are first passed through an afterburner and then used to heat incoming process air via a heat exchanger, minimizing the energy requirements of the system

Stage 3 : Melting

After the de-coated process, the aluminum shreds are put into a melting furnace containing submerged stirrers that create a vortex in the pool of molten aluminum and drag the shreds quickly down into the melt.

Stage 4 : Aluminum Casting

The molten metal is transferred into a furnace to remove impurities and start the casting process then Ingots are cast from the remaining pure metal.

Once in the mold, cool water is sprayed around and through the base of the mold. The aluminum ingot ten solidifies for the next three hours. The finished 18-ton ingots, each containing approximately 1.5 million used cans, are shipped to a mill for rolling into the sheet from which aluminum can makers subsequently produce new cans and the whole process begins again.

source: www.aluminum.org and homeguides.sfgate.com

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers a wide range of aluminum products and is conscious about ecology and sustainable business . You can visit the company’s website or contact us for any inquiry.

Scan the QR code below and stay informed about our latest updates:

Houria // SMC Editor

You Will Like This New Concept: “Little Saturday”

Little Saturday is a concept adopted in Norway, Finland and Sweden, that adds Wednesday to the list of “drinking days”, with Friday and Saturday. Many nightclubs and bars stay open late and offer many kinds of little Saturday specials (rock shows, cheaper drinks etc.). Norwegian teenagers and young adults often use Lille Lørdag as a synonym for Wednesday (Onsdag in Norwegian.) The same concept also exists in some other Nordic countries. In Sweden it is known as Lill-Lördag and in Finland it is called pikkulauantai.

saturday

So if you feel for a little break during your week, you could call in some friends to go hang out at pubs, drink some beer, such as BudLight Platinum, the first beer to adopt a twist-off cap, and a 50% stronger aluminum that helps the beer get colder faster, as we blogged here.

However, if you choose to go for the conventional beer can you could even collect the aluminum pulltabs to make a fashionable and modern handbag such as the ones specially designed and crafted by Escama Studio craftwomen in Brazil.

saturday5

Instead of beer you go for wine, you will have to consider going for the cork or screw-cap for your wine bottle. The advantages of each bottle you can find in our article here.

saturday2

Of course you cannot drink on empty stomach. So if you snack on some potato chips, don’t forget to do the test to find out whether or not your potato chip bags are made of aluminum or Mylar, a fusion of plastic film with a sort of metallic ink, which make it not recyclable, as we explained here.

saturday4

Any choice you make to provide your week that early weekend break widely adopted in Norway, Sweden and Finland, gives you the opportunity to act more environment-friendly and give the disposals of your enjoyment a proper treatment.

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers a wide array of aluminum metal products, in varying forms, sizes and for a number of applications. For our full list of products that we offer check out our website here. Be sure to join the conversation in our LinkedIn group, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Try also our new mobile application by scanning the QR code below.

You can also read more articles by our team at SMC:

TREAT YOUR POTATO CHIPS BAG CORRECTLY

MASSIVE HYPER-REALIST ALUMINUM SCULPTURE WORTH MILLIONS

RECYCLED ALUMINUM PULLTABS MADE POPULAR BY THE BRAZILIAN COOPERATIVE “ESCAMA STUDIO”

NEW IPHONE6 CASES LEAKED BY A SMARTPHONE DESIGN COMPANY

INSIDE ROCKETS: THE ROLE OF ICE AND ALUMINUM

ALUMINUM EXHIBITION ENCOURAGES IMAGINATION IN ENGINEERING

THE NEW RECLOSABLE SCREW-TOP ALUMINUM BOTTLE FOR YOUR BEER

GIVE A LOOK OF LUXURY TO YOUR BEAUTY PACKAGE

LIQUID PACKAGING MADE FAMOUS BY A WATCH COMPANY

5 MODERN INNOVATIVE PACKAGING CONCEPTS

WORLD’S MOST ICONIC SPORTING VENUES UTILIZE ALUMINUM TO PORTRAY MODERN FEEL

FOR OUR SWEDISH READERS: TRÖTT? ANVÄND RULLTRAPPAN!

TIRED? USE THE ESCALATOR!

ALUMINUM ENSURES SMOOTH SAILING AT SEA

FOR OUR BRAZILIAN READERS: ANÁLISE DO SETOR DE ALUMÍNIO NO BRASIL

THE TRUTH IS REVEALED ABOUT THE HEALTH CONCERNS ASSOCIATED WITH ALUMINUM COOKWARE

FULL-METAL DRESS STRUCK BY LIGHTNING

THE EXOTIC TITANIUM BICYCLE

CORK OR SCREW CAP FOR YOUR WINE BOTTLE?

MIX OF ICE AND ALUMINUM AS ROCKET FUEL

FOOD TRUCKS INDUSTRY SWITCHING FROM CHEESEBURGERS AND FRIES TO LETTUCE WRAPS AND KALE CHIPS

AVIATION MADE POSSIBLE BY LIGHT WEIGHT ALUMINUM: A BRIEF HISTORY

2015 LUXURY VEHICLES EMPHASIZE ALUMINUM COMPONENTS

IN ECONOMIC TURMOIL, ENVIRONMENT REMAINS KEY

ICONIC ALUMINUM ROOFING AROUND THE WORLD

FOR OUR CHINESE READERS: 日本不锈钢产业进口

SMC #BuildingValueAcrossTheGlobe

Source: Wikipedia

Pictures: escamastudio.com, crescentbeer

Camilla G.//SMC Editor

Treat Your Potato Chips Bag Correctly

You’ve probably been in this scenario, you and some friends or family members chilling on a Sunday afternoon in front the TV watching that movie you were meant to watch for a while ago, whereas sharing a bag or two of your favorite potato chips.

The question that remains is what do you do with the new-emptied potato chips bags? Do you throw them into the garbage can? Or do you put them into a recycling bin?

The correct answer may depend on what kind of material your potato chips bags are made of. Most potato chips bags are made of Mylar, a fusion of plastic film with a sort of metallic ink. Mylar is not recyclable. It is important to note that just because it is shining it does not mean it is aluminum foil. To make the difference, crumple up the wrapper or packaging. If it springs back to its original shape, then it contains some plastic and cannot be recycled.

You may wonder why metallic chip bags are used to store potato chips rather than plastic packaging. It happens because the metal content of the film provides a superior barrier to oxygen over pure plastic; which allows the product to maintain quality longer. In their unsaturated oil content rancidity is an issue. It’s known as Modified Atmosphere Packaging, and it shows up in other places as well. In oxygen-sensitive foods (potato chips are a great example, as the oil content makes them susceptible to rancidity) the in-package atmosphere usually decreases the oxygen and increases the nitrogen content.

chips3

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers Laminated Aluminum Foil consists basically using adhesive, pressure to combine 6-9 micron aluminum foil with one or more other materials, such as paper and plastic films etc. Laminated aluminium foil film have great seal abilities, and good chemical and water resistance. Its advantages are excellent as they are opaque, with good oxygen barrier, well formed, and maintain fresh the content with long-term preservation. For our full list of products that we offer check out our website here. Be sure to join the conversation in our LinkedIn group, Facebook, and Twitter. Try also our new mobile application by scanning the QR code below.