Aluminum Cans

Basics

• Cans made from Aluminum
• Short of Steel Cans and Plastic Packaging, they are one of the most common forms of packaging
• Also due to the potential availability in Urban Mining via ]]Scrap Metal]] / Recycling Collection , they are a major potential (somewhat Circular Means of Sourcing Aluminum
• Several challenges exist however, and will be presented in this page, along with information on Aluminum Can Products OSE may Buy, or Use for it’s own Packaging

Types

Beverage Cans

• Aluminum Beverage Cans , along with Plastic Bottles are the main means of packaging drinks these days (Although mainly “Fountain Drinks” aka Soda)
• DECEPTIVELY however, these are not 100% Aluminum / Aluminum Oxide
  • They are a Multilayer Packaging product consisting of:
    • An Inner Food Contact rated layer, typically some sort of Sprayed On Plastic Coating (Either self cure, or UV Cured)
      • For more acidic drinks this can be thicker/of different composition, which may need to be considered
      • The ACTUAL Aluminum Can
        • Need to see if these are Anodized at all/what percentage of the total Mass is Aluminum Metal vs Aluminum Oxide
        • The Wall Thickness has also been gradually reduced over time, impacting “Scrap Per Can” calculations
    • A Primer Paint like coating layer
    • On-Can Printed Labels
      • Need to determine what processes/ink are used etc
        • IE some sort of Screen Printing ini wherein Soy Ink / Algae Ink could be used, a more volatile Inkjet Printing ink, or a Dyed Plastic Resin etc
    • A Protection/Gloss Layer (or sometimes simply Paraffin Wax is also added)
      • This is visible in some cans with noticeable chunks of wax on them

Non-Beverage Cans

• Could containers of Oil or Fuel be sold in small Aluminum Cans / is this done?
• It may be Steel or Grey Iron etc, but TruFuel sells their Fuel Products in Metal Cans with (mostly) Metal Lids
  • The lids appear to have a Plastic Gasket, and a Cap ON TOP OF A CAP to enable Childproofing
• Storing Dry Goods in a More Easily Recyclable Metal Can (or Metal Tin ) is an Option as well