Cradle to Gate
Identity ID
9896dbd0fef04eb3bc4ed579f5bb9ee8
Materials
Associated ID
1a0d5491-6774-4cfe-8d53-a3c536021b12
Included activities starts
Included activities ends
Description
Primary aluminum can be used in the following applications and/or processes: automotive, household appliances, construction, machinery, and household goods. This dataset includes the consumption of primary raw and auxiliary materials, energy use, waste treatment, and direct emissions to air and water during the production process. Infrastructure such as production equipment and factory construction is not included within the system boundary of this dataset, and scrap remelting is not covered. The life cycle inventory data are sourced from literature and have been optimized based on the best available information for 2022. The primary production of aluminum ingots consists of three stages: alumina production, anode production, and aluminum electrolysis. Specifically, bauxite is artificially extracted and processed to produce alumina. Aluminum smelting: producing metallic aluminum by electrolysis of alumina.
Activity Description
The primary production process of aluminum ingots includes three stages: alumina production, anode production, and aluminum electrolysis.
Process Description
Primary aluminum is produced through bauxite mining and an electrolytic production process, also known as electrolytic aluminum. Primary aluminum is a metal characterized by softness, non-magnetism, and ductility, with a silvery-gray metallic appearance, classified as a post-transition metal. It is the direct product of the electrolysis process and typically appears in ingot form. Primary aluminum can be used in the following applications and/or processes: automotive, household appliances, construction, machinery, and home products.
Time period
2020
2026
Geography
China
Macroeconomic value
Business-as-Usual
Data validation
Yes
Technology
Current Technology
Technology comment
The primary material in primary aluminum production is bauxite, which is processed and purified through artificial extraction to produce alumina. Metallic aluminum is obtained through the electrolysis of alumina. In addition to alumina, carbon anodes and aluminum fluoride are required as raw materials during the electrolysis stage. Molten aluminum generated during electrolysis is removed from the reduction cells, weighed, sampled, and analyzed, then transferred to holding furnaces and heated to approximately 750°C using natural gas as fuel.