The Extraction of Aluminium Essay Example for Free

The pargonntage of Aluminium EssayThe metal atomic number 13 is a very important to numerous of the worlds industries how ever it requires a special process called electrolysis to get out it bring other metals which is coarsely found with. As i mentioned aluminium is an extremely useful metal and has many uses which we depend on in our day-by-day lifes which atomic number 18 any thing from packaging to being use in transportation.This means that we start out to to be able to extract aluminium, as it is extremely rare to set about aluminium as a free metal. In detail, it is know to combine with over 270 other metals. Extraction is a major problem for aluminium and there is no ideal solution. However there are many not so perfect solutions that are currently being practiced today. In this essay I allow for smack into some of the limitations and benefits of the current extraction techniques. I forget also look at some of the economic and environmental effects the ext raction of aluminium has.When aluminium is extracted from the other metals it moldiness go through processes called electrolysis. Aluminium is not an easy metal to extract from other metals it is found in nature with, therefore it takes a lot of electricity to extract aluminium. Because it is such an energy consuming processe researchers draw found ways to cut down the energy usage by adding different compounds to the aluminium. The most common way to do this is to add molton cryolite to the molton aluminium. With adding molton cryolite to the molton aluminium alone it effectively tear downs the temperature needed extract from 2000C to 950C, that is more than a 50% decrease in the required temperature 2.However due to the fact that the oxygen reacts with the carbon positive electrodes this can cause an inconvenience. When oxygen (O) reacts with carbon (C) it forms carbon dioxide (CO2). When the carbon dioxide forms it ingest away the positive electrode over time. As the positive electrodes are eaten away they must be replaced on a frequent and regular basis, this is a negatieve inconvenience that further adds to the cost of producing aluminum which is already senior high school form the turgid amount of energy that is needed 3.In the remainder of this essay I will look at the aluminium electrolysis plant located in Reydarfjordur, Iceland. I will look at some of the environmental and economic consequences of this plant run by Alcoa. When a new plant or factory is created it can either be good or a bad thing and have both positive and negative effects on the economy and the environnent.With this plant in Reydarfjordur it has a ample effect on the economy as it brings many new jobs to this not yet developed kingdom of Iceland. In order to build this plant it requires around 1800 temporary jobs. After the plant is in a running and stable condition it will require about 450 people on a daily basis as well as another 300 jobs that will be indirectly created 1. As jobs in the eastern Iceland or Reydarfjordur area have been steadily decreasing over time this will hopefully boost the employment rate and provide jobs for many.When extracting aluminium there is no environmentally friendly solution however many new plants, including the Alcoa plant in Reydarfjordur have much dismay emissions than others that are older or less environmentally friendly. The new plan for the Alcoa plant in Reydarfjordur has significantly lower emission rates than other Alcoa plants which are all within local standards. Alcoa claims they are a large supporter of sustainable development and for this plant alone they have over 60 experts looking in to and implementing ways to preserve our environment. This new factory meets and exceeds all European Union and Icelandic emissions requirements, this is the first shade to creating a sustainable plant. In fact, a recent study regarding this factory shows Alcoa factory located in Iceland had 35% lover CO2 emissions tha n other leading aluminum plants. As well as having lower CO2 emissions they also boast 40% less PFC emissions and a 80% lower atomic number 7 oxide emissions 1.Bibliography1. Alcoa. Acoa. 2 Feb. 2008 http//www.alcoa.com/iceland/en/info_page/reydarfjordur.asp.2. Various. Alumiumum. Wikipedia. 1 Feb. 2008. 2 Feb. 2008 http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aluminium.3. Extraction of AL. BBC. 2 Feb. 2008 http//www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/chemistry/usefulproductsrocks/electrolysisrev3.shtml.