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Health and Safety Publication Revision Published
07-29-02
Health and safety are important priorities for the aluminum industry, and The Aluminum Association has been active in providing current guidelines in this area. In an effort to help aluminum recyclers and scrap suppliers prevent accidents and injuries related to aluminum scrap remelting, The Aluminum Association has issued a revised and updated "Guidelines for Aluminum Scrap Receiving and Inspection Based on Safety and Health Considerations", Second Edition, 2002.
While solid bulk aluminum is noncombustible, molten aluminum and finely divided aluminum such as powder and fines can be highly reactive. As a result, The Aluminum Association has been active in producing and updating publications that provide information on the safe handling of these forms of aluminum on a regular basis. Specifically, the following publications are very relevant:
- "Guidelines for Handling Molten Aluminum", Third Edition, 2002
- "Guidelines for Aluminum Sow Casting and Charging", 1998
- "Recommendations for Storage and Handling of Aluminum Powder and Paste", Fourth Edition, 1998
- "Guidelines for Handling Aluminum Fines Generated during Various Aluminum Fabricating Operations", Second Edition, 2000.
Completing this suite of safety-related publications is the expanded Second Edition of the publication "Guidelines for Aluminum Scrap Receiving and Inspection Based on Safety and Health Considerations". Incoming scrap can contain a range of potential contaminants that can affect health and safety in the remelting operation, and it is the goal of these Guidelines to provide guidance in this area. The Second Edition represents primarily a restatement and confirmation of information in the previous edition, issued in 1992. In addition, descriptions and forms for both the Aluminum Association Molten Metal Incident Reporting System and Aluminum Association Scrap Rejection Notification Reporting System are included in this publication.
While general safety practices are discussed in the publications noted above, it is important to exercise hazard prevention before the scrap reaches the remelting furnace. Recognizing that each remelting facility has its own capabilities and needs, the Guidelines offer information and suggestions derived from general industry experience for the consideration of individual plants in designing and operating their own scrap remelting safety programs. Hence, these Guidelines address:
- Practices intended to keep water and other contaminants out of aluminum scrap destined for remelting
- Approaches to discovering water and other contaminants in incoming scrap
- Methods to remove water and contaminants from incoming scrap where possible
- Procedures to reject and report unacceptably contaminated scrap
Specific information is provided on a number of classes of contaminants that pose potential safety hazards, including:
- Water
- Volatile substances such as oils and other fluids
- Powders, such as nitrates, sulfates, and other oxidizers
- Aluminum fines and powders
- Closed containers such as aerosol cans and other sealed or pressurized containers
- Heavily oxidized or corroded metals that could react with molten aluminum via a thermite reaction
- PCB-contaminated oils
- Selenium, found on aluminum photocopier image transfer tubes
- Lead, mercury, and cadmium, so called "heavy metals" that are restricted to low levels, especially for materials that will subsequently be used in packaging applications
- Radioactive materials
- Aluminum-lithium alloys, which are more reactive than conventional aluminum alloys and must be remelted separately in special equipment
- Medical waste, including hypodermic needles
For each of these classes of contaminants, information is provided to facilitate inspection, recognition, and evaluation.
In addition, The Aluminum Association now administers the Scrap Rejection Notification Program, a service for participating companies whereby information on scrap loads that are rejected for health and safety considerations can be shared with other participants. Information on participation in this program can be obtained from this publication or by contacting Chuck Johnson at the Aluminum Association.
"Guidelines for Aluminum Scrap Receiving and Inspection Based on Safety and Health Considerations", Second Edition, 2002, as well as the other health and safety-related publications, are available from the Aluminum Association online at www.aluminum.org using the Bookstore link or by calling (301) 645-0756.
Article courtesy of Secat, Inc. - Research Resource for the Aluminum Industry
www.secat.net
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