Aluminum developing, manufacturing, and recycling company Constellium has teamed up with TARMAC Aerosave, a provider of aircraft maintenance, storage, and recycling, to remelt and recycle aluminum from out-of-commission aircraft, according to Inspenet.
A Constellium press release said TARMAC Aerosave provided the aluminum, and Constellium remelted the alloy to create a material that meets the standards for new aircraft manufacturing.
The initiative, along with the successful follow-through from both companies, will foster a circular economy within the aerospace industry.
Airplane production heavily relies on aluminum, as the metal makes up the majority of an airplane's body. A Metal Supermarkets blog post states that aluminum accounts for 70% to 80% of an aircraft's composition.
It takes a lot of aluminum to craft the estimated 23,513 active aircraft documented in 2022 per Ch-Aviation, as planes are huge.
A Boeing 737 Max 7, for example, has a fuselage length of approximately 116 feet and wingspan of 117 feet, according to Axon Aviation Group, and this is not even the largest model out there.
While aluminum is used for other products, the massive amounts needed to build an airplane are overwhelming, especially when considering the dangers of aluminum pollution to both the planet and human health.
The aluminum industry, according to the Environmental Integrity Project, greatly pollutes the air, and the six running aluminum production plants have exceeded pollution output limits at least 206 times in five years.
The Environmental Integrity Project also says some pollutants emitted in the aluminum production process can cause lung disease and heart attacks.
By recycling airplane aluminum, Constellium and TARMAC Aerosave will save money and help protect the planet from the excessive emissions of air pollution associated with aluminum production.
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No way 🙅 Recycled aluminum, according to Inspenet, requires 5% of the energy to create when compared to primary production. Recycled aluminum, too, reduces CO2 emissions by up to 95%.
In a statement, Philippe Hoffmann, President of Constellium's Aerospace and Transportation business unit, said, "We [Constellium] have extensive experience in giving aluminum an endless life across various industries. What makes this initiative truly exciting is that it demonstrates (...) that even complex aerospace aluminum alloys from end-of-life aircraft can be fully recycled. It's a proof point for the circular economy in aviation."
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