Due to their physico-mechanical properties, aluminum alloys are one of the most important structural materials presently in use. Aluminum alloys are second only to steel in terms of volume of production and substantially outstrip other nonferrous metals in this regard. For example, the worldwide production of different types of metals at the end of the last century broke down as follows: 800 million tons/yr for steel (including 14 million tons of stainless steel); 24 million tons/yr for aluminum; 12 million tons/yr for copper; 400,000 tons/yr for magnesium; 60,000 tons/yr for titanium. Problems in the aluminum industry related to the large amount of energy needed to extract from bauxite and the accompanying pollution of the environment may be partially resolved in the coming decades by the introduction of new electrolysis technologies (such as ones employing inert anodes, which make it possible to reduce energy consumption and partially or completely eliminate the formation of hot gases) and the widespread use of recycling. World production of secondary aluminum from scrap obtained from products that have outlived their useful life - production that brings an energy savings of up to 95 percent -has already exceeded 10 million tons/yr. In other words, each third ton of aluminum consumed worldwide was produced from secondary metal. It is projected [1] that by 2030 total aluminum consumption could reach 50 million tons/yr (22-24 million tons of secondary aluminum and 26-28 million tons of primary metal). An increasing volume of aluminum will thus be produced by melting a solid charge, which makes it particularly important to optimize the technology used to make aluminum. That will in turn make it possible to reach the necessary level of output while minimizing production costs and adverse environmental effects.
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