Did you know that steel is the world’s most recycled metal? One of the main reasons for this is that steel is extremely economical to recycle because of its magnetic qualities and because it does not lose any of its inherent strength qualities, no matter how many times it is recycled.
Here is an infographic by Tata Steel that shows the amazing life cycle of steel.
The Most Recycled Metal in The World
- Has Been Used for Over 1000 Years
- Is The Only Common Metal That Will Stick to A Magnet
- Is The Most Recycled Material on Earth
Steel is extremely economical to recycle because of its magnetic qualities and because it doesn’t lose any of its inherent strength qualities, no matter how many times it is recycled.
What Is Steel?
Steel is an alloy material made of iron and other elements including carbon.
You will also find the following elements present in steel
- Mn: Manganese
- P: Phosphorus
- S: Sulphur
- Si: Silicon
- O: Oxygen
- N: Nitrogen
- Al: Aluminium
Hard Facts
- 25 Million – A Number Of Tonnes Of Steel Products Produced Each Year
- 2 Million – The Number Of People The World Steel Industry Employs
- 200 Billion – The Number Of Steel Cans Of Food Produced Each Year
- Nicolas Appert – Invented The Steel Can In 1810 As A Way To Preserve Food For Napoleon’s Army
- 2/ 3 – Amount Of Cans On Supermarket Shelves Made Of Steel
The Life Cycle of Recycled Steel
Full Cycle
- Purchased – Consumables are bought from the supermarket
- Consumed – Product is consumed or used
- Disposed In Recycling – Waste steel is put in recycling
- Collected – Recycling is collected
- Sorted – Then sorted
- Baled & Compacted – Products are baled and compacted for ease of transport and handling
- Shipped – Products are shipped to shop and supermarket
- Remoulded – These sheets are used to manufacture new products
- Cooled & Rolled – The melted metal is poured into slab moulds and rolled into coils and flat sheets
- Heated – Oxygen is blasted into the furnace, which is heated to 1700 degrees centigrade
- Iron Added – Molten iron is added
- Melted – The recovered materials are melted in a furnace
Recycled Steel Statistics
- Recycling 1.0 tonne of steel saves 1.5 tonnes of iron ore and 0.5 tonnes of coal
- 86% saved in air pollution
- 40% saved in water use
- 76% saved in water pollution 42% new metals made using recycled steel
- 62-74% energy saving
- 200 Million Tonnes – Recycling raw materials cuts CO₂ emissions by this amount every year
- 100% – amount of steel cans that are recyclable
- 5 Billion – The Number Of Cans Recycled Each Year
- 18,000 – The Weight Equivalent In Double Decker Buses
- 25% – Percentage Of Steel Cans Made From Recycled Steel
- 26 Hours – How Long You Can Power A 60-watt Light Bulb For With The Energy Saved From Recycling Seven Steel Cans
- 94% – The Percentage Of Steel Recycled When A Building Is Demolished
Steel is an essential material that is pivotal to our way of life and to the products we will demand for a sustainable future.
It is a unique material that can be used forever once made; it has a unique ability to be truly recycled through a closed-loop system, which will lead to the further preservation of earth’s precious resources.