Secondary aluminium requires only 5% of the energy compared to primary metal. Use of recycled aluminium means energy saving and a better use of resources. Therefore recycling activities are becoming more and more important. The recycling rate of production scrap is high, however, separation of non ferrous materials from other waste streams is difficult, particularly for packaging materials. In different European countries there are large differences in the government legislations for the re-use of packaging materials.
In 1991 a Dutch research programme was formulated and has started on the separation of non ferrous materials from household waste. Partners in this research programme are: Hoogovens Group, Vuilafvoer Maatschappij (VAM), Aluminium Hardenberg and Aluminium Centrum.
The research programme will be discussed. The Eddy Current technique, the recent developments and the choice of equipment will be described. The system of recovery of household waste is shown, details about the different fractions in the packaging stream and the recovery rates are given. The remelting is discussed, which techniques are available, what are the results of the first trials, what are the possibilities and what are the bottlenecks.