LAUSANNE, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 30, 1997--Hydro Aluminium Extrusion today completed the acquisition of Ellay Enfield, the UK's leading producer of thin wall welded tube for the automotive heat exchange industry.

Ellay Enfield, based in Workington in North West England, is a world leader in the production of welded thin wall flat oval tube in both aluminum and brass for heat exchanger applications. Turnover of 12 million GBP in 1996 is expected to grow significantly in 1997 with the conclusion of current investment programmes. The company currently has 100 employees.

Hydro is a leader in extruded and drawn aluminum tube for worldwide automotive applications.

Ivar Hafsett, the president of Hydro Aluminium Extrusion, comments: "The acquisition is an important strategic step for Hydro as welded tube is a complementary product to our extruded and drawn tube products. We will now be in a position to offer our customers a `one stop shopping' solution for all their heat exchange tubing needs and to take advantage of the opportunity for product integration. This will become increasingly important as first tier automotive manufacturers rationalise their supplier bases and demand stronger and more capable suppliers. Ellay Enfield's strong technology base gives us the opportunity to develop both their and our product ranges to maintain our market leading position through the development of new and innovative heat exchange products and services, and to capitalise on the substantial growth projected in the brazed aluminum heat exchanger segment."

The new name of the company will be Hydro Ellay Enfield.

Hydro Aluminium Extrusion is a world leader in aluminum extrusions and a division of Norsk Hydro, the Norwegian-based industrial group with major interests in light metals, oil and gas, agriculture and petrochemicals. Total Norsk Hydro sales in 1996 were more than $13 billion.

Sapa has reached a definitive agreement to acquire the largest aluminium extruder on the West Coast of America, Anodizing Inc. of Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1964, Anodizing Inc. focuses on aluminium profiles and finishing which is complimented by an expertise in fabrication and other product based processes. The company had sales of $132m (MSEK 1200) in 1999 and employs 930 people. Deliveries last year exceeded 32,000 tonnes. The company has five extrusions presses, two anodising plants, vertical and horizontal paint lines, a miniature extrusion facility, in addition to its five fabrication and assembly plants. In all 500,000 sq ft of facilities within a 7 mile radius of the centre of Portland.

"We have stated that Sapa has a clear ambition to expand within high value- added aluminium profiles. This acquisition gives Sapa a solid presence in a market where we have not been active before. Anodizing is a well-run company and has shown strong growth in sales and margins over a long number of years. They focus on high value-added products for selected markets and customers. By entering into the US through Anodizing Inc., we get a strong foothold for further expansion," says Staffan Bohman, CEO of Sapa. "Sapa's profiles operations have grown at a very high pace during the last 2 years. By end of 1998 we had a production of about 140,000 tonnes of aluminium profiles. Since then we have taken major steps by acquiring the largest independent extruder in France, made new investments in existing plants,started the investment of a new large press in France and recently bought the market leader in Portugal. To this we can now add the acquisition in the US. Together this will give us an annual output of around 280,000 tonnes, i.e a doubling of the capacity in 2-3 years. All these activities are in line with our ambition to be the world's leading independent extruder," adds Staffan Bohman. The acquisition of Anodizing Inc. is subject to necessary approvals. It is anticipated that the deal will close on the 1st September 2000.

For further information please contact Staffan Bohman, CEO Sapa, tel +46 8 459 5910, Claes-R. Simonson, EVP Sapa, or Cecilia Lager, Investor Relations & Communication, tel +46 8 459 5941.

Sapa is an international industrial group focused on high value-added products based on the lightweight materials aluminium and plastics. The products range from profiles and heat-transfer strip in aluminium to components and systems in plastics for the automotive industry. Sapa is one of Europe's leading companies within its field and the customers are found in the transport-, building, engineering- and telecom industries. Sapa is registered on the A-list of the OM Stockholm Exchange.

An aluminium alloy die casting system provides a die casting machine which has a gate for melted aluminium alloys passage, sets a flow rate of melted aluminium alloy in range of 5m/sec to 15m/sec and press injects melted alloy in cavity of die. By this system it is possible to get a weldable casting having no air. An aluminium auto part manufactured by above mentioned process is weldable and also dense in structure. The result is auto parts formed of die-cast products are produced on a large scale cost effectively.

Aluminium and aluminium alloys casting problems:
Aluminium castings have played significant role in development of aluminium industry since its inception in late 19th century. The first aluminium products were castings such as utensils and decorative parts which exploited the novelty and utilization of new discovery. Those early parts quickly expanded to meet the requirements of a wide range of engineering specifications.

Alloys development and analyzation of physical and mechanical features gave basis for product development through the decades which followed. Casting systems were processed to increase capabilities of foundries in new commercial and technical uses. The system of melted metal processing, solidification, and property development has been advanced to assist foundry man with means of cost effective and trustable production of components which regularly meet specific needs.

Nowadays aluminium alloy castings are manufactured in hundreds of ways by all commercial casting systems including green sand, dry sand, composite mould, plaster mould, investment casting permanent mould, gravity casting, low-pressure casting and pressure die casting.

Material constraints which previously limited the design engineers alloy choice once a casting process was selected are continuously being blurred by advancement in foundry techniques. Similarly process selection is also less restricted these days. Like the many alloys previously thought to be unusable in permanent moulds because of their casting features are in production by that very process.

Melting and metal treatment:
Aluminium and aluminium alloys may be melted in various ways. Coreless and channel induction furnaces, crucible and open-hearth reverberatory furnaces fired by natural gas or fuel oil and electric resistance and electric radiation furnaces are all in routine use. The nature of furnace charge is as different and important as the choice of metal casting operations. The furnace charge may differ from pre-alloyed ingot of high quality to charge made up of low quality scrap. Even under best melting and melt holding situation melted aluminium is at risk to these types of degradation.
a) With time at temperature, adsorption of hydrogen results in increased hydrogen content.
b) With time at temperature, oxidation of melt occurs.
c) Transient elements featured by low vapor pressure and high reactivity are reduced.

Turbulence or agitation of melt and increased holding temperature, significantly increase the rate of hydrogen solution oxidation and transient element loss. The mechanical properties of aluminium alloys depend on casting soundness which is highly influenced by hydrogen porosity and entrapped non metallic inclusions. Aluminium casting and alloys and products manufactured by them are things of the future due to their cost effectiveness and lightweight.

An important addition to any British back garden, greenhouses are firmly established in the British way of life. It's probably the inclement weather that drives the british gardener 'inside'. If you are visiting this site then you are probably thinking about obtaining a new greenhouse. It is possible you don't know the type of greenhouse you need or even how to decide on the type of greenhouse. Greenhouse design was revolutionised with the arrival of aluminium frames and the scarcity of pine. This article takes a brief look at the differences between metal and wooden greenhouses.

-- Wooden Greenhouses --

Wooden Greenhouses are the choice for the traditionalist and the expert gardener. They are commonly made from Canadian Western Red Cedar, which is renowned for it's exceptional long life outdoors as a result of it's effective rot resistance. Wooden greenhouses are the traditional style of greenhouse before the aluminium greenhouses and plastic greenhouses became more popular towards the end of the last century.

A timber greenhouse will obviously blend in naturally with your garden and will become an integral feature rather than something of an eyesore which you wish to hide away. Timber is also the choice of the expert gardener and it is generally agreed that it is the best material for a greenhouse. One of the main reasons is that the red cedar greenhouses are much better at maintaining a constant temperature than aluminium ones, which obviously leads to a healthier and more natural environment. An experienced gardener will know the benefit of having things to hand and a wooden frame will allow the gardener to easily fix hooks and shelves exactly where he wants them, so those all important greenhouse accessories are to hand. The wooden frame also makes it easier to fix an extra layer of insulation of plastic bubble sheeting, such severe weather conditions prevail.

The best time to add a protective coat to a timber frame is before winter sets in. Choose a good day in the late autumn and give the frame any attention it needs. Look for any wear and tear and treat it immediately. Most good timber frames come with a ten year gaurantee, but don't wait for 10 years before checking.

Wooden greenhouses are slightly more expensive than aluminium and plastic ones, but do offer more to the experienced gardener. Aluminium and plastic greenhouses are a better choice for the beginner before upgrading to a timber greenhouse.

-- Aluminium Greenhouses --

A major advantage of aluminium greenhouses is that they are relatively cheap and maintenance free. They are the best choice of greenhouse if your priority is low maintenance. However, you should be aware of the advantages of other types of greenhouse. For example, with wooden greenhouses it is easy to fix extra shelves and hookes, inside and out. Aluminium is certainly easier to maintain than a wooden greenhouse, but care should be taken to keep all structural components as clean as possible to deter pests and disease.Aluminium greenhouses are certainly the most popular at the moment and part of the attractiveness is the flat pack packaging and (relatively easy) self assembly. This helps keep the cost down and aluminium is the value for money choice of greenhouse.

Before erecting an aluminium greenhouse, there are certain considerations. Firstly you should decide upon the location of the greenhouse. Somewhere easily accessible during bad weather would be good. Observe areas of your garden during sunny days to see which parts get the most sunlight. Some protection from wind would be good, but not at the expense of blocking out light. Also, be aware of any stray footballs from next door !

If you're after a value for money and low maintenance greenhouse then aluminium is a good choice. You may lose some of the aesthetic qualities of a wooden greenhouse, but you do benefit from modern technology and design.

Aluminium doesn't strike many people as an exciting or interesting metal but a new book "Mafia In Black" by Andrei Kalitin outlines a story that was to see the so called "aluminum wars" wage and claim over 100 lives.

From this turbulent period, RUSAL has emerged as a symbol of new Russian economic power.

Russia has emerged, not just as an economic force in Aluminium but is important to the world economy in terms of a whole host of commodities.

The Aluminium Wars

In the "aluminium wars" rivals fought for control of Russian smelters in the 1990's.Today, these days are long gone and the wars are over - but the emergence of RUSAL, has seen how high the stakes were.

There were of course winners and losers in the aluminium wars and this is covered in new book "Mafia in Black", by Andrei Katitin (recently he claimed he was shot in the shoulder by a gunman outside his apartment which he believes is linked to the book) "Mafia in Black" is a fascinating read, on a period of immense change in Russian society and the economy generally.

The Emergence of the Russian Oligarch On A Global Stage

The story of the "Aluminium wars" is of interest to many observers of Russian society, as it covers a period when the country was in a period of transition, into a free market economy from the old regulated Soviet economy.

A major question that many observers of Russia are interested in is - how did the mega rich Russians make their money?

This interest was heightened when one of Russia's richest men, walked into west London and bought Chelsea FC. Roman Abramovich, was a Russian oligarch who was at the time generally unknown in the west at the time but is now a household name.

He bailed out Chelsea football club to the tune of $140 million and has gone on to spend in excess of $500 million on the club - a huge sum but small change to Russia's second-richest man.

But how did he get it?

Through various businesses which grew during the turbulent period, that followed the collapse of the old Soviet Union. His move into the aluminium industry, was seen as the conclusion of the "Aluminium wars".

So why did 100 people die and why is there so much controversy about the period?

The stakes were high and a look at the Russian aluminum industry today, shows how high they were and what was at stake finacially. Today, the Russian Aluminium industry is consolidated in one company - referred to as Russian Aluminium or RUSAL.

The Emergence of RUSAL

The company is a true heavyweight in the aluminium industry. In Siberia it operates 5 huge aluminium smelters and two massive refineries -- but its influence now goes a lot further and it's now a global player.

RUSAL recently overtake Alcoa and Alcan as the largest aluminium producer in the world after merging with its nearest rival Sual.

The facts behind RUSAL, clearly show its importance in the world metal and aluminimum industry. RUSAL is the world's largest aluminium and alumina producer, with 12% of the world's aluminium market, 15% of the global production, has operations in 19 countries and employs around 100,000 people.

Russian Inc Goes Global

Oleg Deripaska, is Russia's undisputed aluminium king and Deripaska, is one of Russia's richest and most influential businessmen and is one of the Russian oligarchs who reflects the new economic power of Russia.

He has excellent connections to the current regime; he is related by marriage to former President Boris Yeltsin and is close to Vladimir Putin.

"The aluminium wars" were played out in a period where Russia was struggling to come to terms with the transition from the old Soviet style economy, to a new free market. Many observers in the west simply saw the Russia economy in a period of decline and corruption, which it would never recover from - but today, the perception of Russia is very different.

Russia Takes Its Place On the World Stage

Russia has huge natural reserves of a huge host of commodities and commodity prices are rising fast.

Putin has capitalized on booming oil and commodities prices as a means to recover Russia's lost status as a great power.

Russia is now being taken more seriously on both a political and economic level, than at anytime since the break up of the old Soviet regime.

It's importance in feeding the world with commodities, to fuel global economic growth and the emergence of RUSAL from the turbulent period of the "aluminimum wars" is a reflection of this.

Today, Russia has re gained its national pride and is able to take its place as a major economic force. Companies such as RUSAL, are a reflection of the momentous changes that have taken place in the Russian economy in recent years.

From the turbulent period of the "aluminium wars" featured in "Mafia in Black", to a major player in the world's commodity markets, Russia is back as a major force in the world economy.

Wood Venetian Blinds: The best way to keep wooden venetian blinds clean is to dust them on a regular basis. As the surface of the slats are smooth it's a fairly easy job to wipe them down with a cloth or brush off the dust using a clean soft duster. Another good method is to use a vacuum cleaner with a brush attachment.

The only thing that is not recommended is to wash these blinds. By that I mean soaking them with water, because although these blinds are sealed, water and excessive dampness can cause the slats to warp. You can use a damp cloth to wipe them over, just be careful not to soak them.

Another handy tip is to put a pair of cotton gloves or even an old pair of socks onto your hands and wipe the slats between your fingers. You can also use a small paintbrush to dust the slats.

Aluminium Venetian Blinds: As with wooden venetian blinds it is best to dust this type of blind on a regular basis to avoid a large build up of dust. Again brush the dust off using a clean soft duster or a vacuum cleaner with a brush attachment.

Unlike the wooden blinds you can use water and some kind of detergent on aluminium venetian blinds. The best way to do this is to tilt the blinds so that the slats are flat. Then using a cloth or sponge with some water and some washing up liquid, wipe them over. Avoid being too aggressive and accidentally damaging the slats by bending them.

If the blinds are particularly dirty, for example if they are in the kitchen and have become greasy and very dusty over a period of time, you will need to take the blinds down to clean them.

This can be done in two ways. The first method is to take the blinds outside, weather permitting and hang them on a washing line or something similar. You will then need a bucket with warm soapy water and a sponge.

Wipe the blinds front and back with the sponge until you have got all the dirt off them, being careful not to scrub too hard and damage the slats. Once you have managed to get all the dirt off you can then hose the blinds down and leave them to dry. As they are nearly dry it is a good idea to wipe them with a soft cloth or paper towel to remove any excess water.

The second method is to fill the bathtub with enough warm soapy water to cover the blinds. Then place the blinds in the water and sponge them down until you have removed all the dirt. You can them rinse them off with a shower attachment or by just running the shower. If you bathtub is separate from the shower, fill the tub with enough clean water to rinse the blinds thoroughly. You will then need to take them outside, and as before hang them on the washing line to dry.

Caption: A NEW 275km/h eight-car Shinkansen emu for JR East--the Series E2-1000--is undergoing tests in Japan. It will operate on the Tohoku Line, which will be extended 97km from Morioka to Hachinohe in 2002. It has two driving trailers and six motored cars, and can seat 630. Bodyshells are made of double-skin aluminium extrusions.

The train has a newly-designed pantograph, which reduces noise by employing new oval-shaped epoxy resin insulators with a surrounding noise shield.

Man Industries (India) Ltd, India's third largest SAW pipe manufacturer and also the largest manfucturer-exporter of aluminium extrusions in the country, has registered a growth in sales and profits for the year ended March 31, 2004.

According to News Today, sales at Rs 502 crore, have registered a growth of 83 per cent over the Rs 274 crore recorded in the previous year.

Operating profit before depreciation, interest and tax for the year at Rs 75.41 crore rose by 103 per cent over the previous year.

Anglesey Aluminium Metal (AAM) Limited, the Holyhead based smelter, faces some very difficult choices over the next two to three years.

With the impending closure of Wylfa Power Station on Anglesey in 2010, the aluminium smelter urgently needs to secure an alternative supply of electricity.

The existing continuous 250 MW electricity baseload supply contract with Wylfa has been a long term one, so providing stability and certainty. With the closure of the Wylfa nuclear plant, that certainty framework disappears and AAM is urgently searching for a viable solution.

Jointly owned by Rio Tinto (51%) and US-based Kaiser Aluminium and Chemical Corporation (49%), Anglesey Aluminium Metal has been a major supplier of aluminium metal for extruding, rolling and re-smelting to UK and European markets since it started at Holyhead in 1971.

With over 500 highly paid posts at the plant, closure would be a severe blow to the local economy, which will need to readjust to the closure at Wylfa.

David Bloor, Anglesey Aluminium MD,reckons there are in effect four options on the table. Firstly, the smelter could negotiate and secure another long term (10-15 years) contract on the open electricity market as in the past. Mr Bloor, however, is not sanguine on prospects for such a deal because of the inherent risk in forward pricing.

Alternatively, AAM could opt for shorter term - say 2 yearly- contracts on the open market, but the question would be whether such terms could be secured as profitably as in the past.

If the above two possibilities are not feasible, the third choice would be to have on-site generating capacity. The company has commissioned feasibility studies into alternative energy sources on site, including building a biomass power station.

Providing a secure, dependable and steady supply of wood chips would require significant quantities of wood. There would also have to be consideration given to securing sufficient sources of supply and the lead times from felling, drying out and processing of the wood chips, not to mention the transport logistics.

If the above three options are not workable, the fourth option is simply to switch off the power and shut the gates. Such a scenario fills local people with gloom, but Mr Bloor said this possibility had to be considered. After all,the plant along with the jetty in Holyhead harbour, has been an icon of the town's industrial base since its introduction in 1971.

Just consider that while this Rio Tinto Kaiser smelter has doubled its production to over 140,000 tonnes since it started in 1971, it has also achieved remarkable results on its carbon emission targets. Against a Kyoto target of a 12.5% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2012, the company has cut its carbon equivalent emissions by more than 50% since 1990.

And its amazing to reflect on such an outstanding achievement in a relatively energy intensive industry in the week that G8 leaders gather in Germany to discuss a post-Kyoto (2012) framework with tougher greenhouse gas emission targets. In fact, Angela Merkel, German Chancellor and current G8 President, has suggested an ambitious plan of 50% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2050.

It is ironic that closure is considered a possibility as globally we have seen a surge in demand for aluminium along with other industrial metals such as copper, zinc and iron. With no apparent let-up in demand from China, India and other emerging markets, this seems a good time to be producing aluminium.

Indeed, GFMS Metals Consulting notes that global primary aluminium in April 2007 climbed to 3 million tonnes, a 12% riseover 12 months, and European demand also seems to be holding up well.

Mr Bloor believes that so long as the relationship between aluminium and electricity prices translates into a profit, even a small one, then the Holyhead plant will continue going forward.

His ideal scenario is for Wylfa B to be given the green light and for a similar partnership deal as before to be struck with the new nuclear generator.

So let's hope the recent Energy White Paper and nuclear consultation lead to a favourable climate for new nuclear build. We can then expect energy giants like E.ON and EDF Energy to be fighting for the contract to design, build and operate Wylfa B, and Rio Tinto Anglesey Aluminium will have another lease of life.

Aluminium is the choice metal for making light weight parts of vehicles, aerospace and transport industries. Casting of liquid aluminium alloys into metal moulds utilizing systems like gravity, low pressure and high pressure die casting is an economical way of making difficult shapes which need minimum machining. Australia’s auto industry supports a large local die casting business, manufacturing parts that include cylinders, pistons and engine sumps etc.

Rising demand in world auto market for aluminium die cast parts is producing great opportunity and challenge for Australian business which wants to emerge as a global player. By setting partnerships between Nissan and Ford, CAST has developed and produced new and latest technology that has been benefiting our partner’s products. In turn these skills have created IP that is poised on the verge of commercialization.

To increase production of high pressure die casting by lessening its time cycle by 30%. The cycle time has been reduced by more than 20% on certain parts at two industry partner plants. The project involves identifying places where cycle time may be reduced, and doing it practically to prove the findings of research. This made it essential to involve shop floor staff to implement the changes needed in systems. These trails are generally in variation with day to day production and due to true co-operation of shop floor staff it become possible to achieve targets.

The third year of project has seen the true spirit of co-operation between researches and industrial partners in which latest research results got through simulated trails have been done practically on shop floor with help and support of Ford and Nissan staff. The changes once tested during trials have been incorporated in production systems giving benefits of reduced costs by reducing time of each part manufactured. An example of reduced time achieved is at Nissan on a gearbox side cover made in twin cavity die has given successful results after many months; from an initial cycle time of 75 seconds down to 60 seconds. While research at Ford on a changer housing casting, has been successfully implemented by lessening cycle time from 90 seconds to 74 seconds.

In future the reduction of time cycle will be tried for other parts as well.

Automatic fault detection in aluminium die casting:
This involves developing a system to detect surface and sub surface defects.

A fully automatic fault detecting machine named CAST vision has been produced and a prototype process is in place for extended in-plant on-line trials. This is the third year of this project and it is giving good results. The result of algorithm which was designed and developed in 2nd year has been put to test now. By prototyping the CAST team had designed and developed a working system CAST vision. This can discriminate between good and defective parts.

The prototype system has capacity to detect blocked holes on any of holes on this complex casting. Offline processes have also been readied which will detect hot tears and cold shuts on Ford’s structural sump casting.

Work at Nissan on their pump cover casting has led to a CAST vision type process for in-line fault detection. The process can take images and find certain types of defects on the surface part. This project has shown that advances in mechanical vision applied for finding faults of aluminium castings can be converted from project stage to a working prototype successfully. The next stage is take concepts from single stage to multistage processes capable to handle more complex shapes and surfaces. This result will become a strong contender for future commercialization.

New high performing zinc-aluminium ZA casting alloys (ZA-8, ZA-12, ZA-27) give superior mechanical properties which designers can apply utilizing die casting technology. In general the ZA alloys are stronger, harder and offer more creep resistance than standard zinc alloys and can be used where bearing properties are important.

Aluminium alloys with 0.5-0.9% Fe content have largely replaced 1350 EC alloy for making electrical circuits because the latter continuously suffered from gradual loosening at terminals, which led to overheating. This problem has been totally removed in new conductor alloys without sacrifice of conductivity.

To get economic benefit of weight advantage of aluminium wire should be capable of attaching securely to standard fixtures without special handling techniques. But EC wire on binding screw terminals tightened to a standard torque may become loose, when the wire heats due to being overloaded. The wire gets expanded more than the Cu-alloy fixture and creeps to relax the added stress.

On getting cool it contracts to a smaller dimension, whereby the area of contact is reduced and it permits oxide to form at interface. On a subsequent current overflow, the overheating increases which leads to further loosening of wire. EC wire annealed for adequate bend ability gets sub structurally loosened at 200°C and ultimately fails due to repetitions of these cycles.

The new alloys (800 series) of 0.5-0.9% Fe have much better microstructural stability and creep resistance and, therefore, they are not prone to these failures.

While annealed to the same ductility or bend ability, the high Fe alloys are double strong. This capability has been established by practical field use of many years in USA, Europe and South Africa after these alloys were introduced in 1968.

Better and latest alloys which not only provide high integrity to terminations but are suitable for magnet wire after normal hot annealing have been made after adding a third alloy to improve its performance examples are 0.5% Fe with 0.5% Co and 0.5% Fe with 0.2-0.4% Si.

Processing and microstructure:
In continuous casting a bar of 50cm2 is made at 16 m/min on a 2.5m diameter copper wheel. The quick solidification results in a 20 μm dendrite arm spacing and eutectic red cpacing of about 0.2 μm with a supersaturation of about 0.1% Fe. These very fine particles play a significant role in giving stability to substructure while being incapable of nucleating crystallization.

The presence of sub grains has been known in hot worked aluminiums but without quantitative determinations of the dimensions or the effects on properties. As the temperature rises from 200-450°C, the cold yield strength of the hot worked product decreases greatly from the strengthening made by 97.5% cold rolling.

As has been seen in many hot worked metals, the yield strength is inversely proportional to sub grain diameter. Because the temperature is less and strain rate is high in a given pass than those in the previous one, substructure “inherited” from i.e., carried forward from, the latter is altered by dislocations to the existing walls to raise their density and by formation of new walls to subdivide the sub grains lessening their size.

When the novice hobby metal caster first thinks about melting metal, the immediate thought is to collect a big box of Al bottle tops and Al drink cans to melt. The most likely reason for this is that the material is relatively easy to collect and handle, and the thinking behind the idea is that because of its lightweight it should melt quite readily.

Then why is it so difficult to melt & reclaim aluminium drink cans, bottle tops & swarf in a hobby gas fired crucible furnace?


To melt & reclaim light weight scrap aluminium requires the use of some specialised equipment. Most commercial scrap metal recovery foundries use what is known as a rotary type melting furnace. This type of furnace is designed in such a way that the flame actually strikes the rotating furnace lining, and the heat spreads quickly around the furnace walls, which absorb the heat. As the furnace rotates, the heat is also taken up or absorbed by the scrap metal.

It is essential to melt the metal under a cover of MOLTEN FLUX, otherwise very heavy metal oxidation results and subsequently very little metal is actually recovered.

As each piece of small swarf or chip melts, it forms a globule of liquid metal surrounded by a shell of oxide. The skin tension of this oxidant around the globule prevents coalescence, i.e. (to grow together) and because of the large surface area presented by the mass of globules, with the increase of oxide formation loss of yield is bound to take place.

The skin of the oxide on the molten globule has to be "ruptured" in order to allow coalescence, i.e. to allow the clusters of globules to actually join together in their molten state.


A molten flux encourages coalescence by chemical action.

While the rotation of the furnace provides a mechanical action. The special fluxes; coveral 48 & 57 provide the chemical action, they are the best type of fluxes to use when melting Al metal in the region of 590 to 600 C. (Coveral 48 & 57 products are copyright Foseco Pty Ltd)

This flux may or may not provide similar results when used in a normal crucible gas fired furnace, but the yield loss will still be considerable.

The hobby foundry worker would be better off directing his energy towards collecting easier to source, better quality scrap to melt, such as discarded cylinder heads, inlet manifold castings, auto pistons, etc. Or if the budget stretches that far, purchase commercially produced ingots, which are of a known quality. Commercial ingots will provide top quality metal right from the word go.

Trying to melt lightweight Al drink cans and bottle tops is generally a waste of time for the hobby worker, unless you use the fluxes mentioned above, and use the correct furnace. Otherwise a lot of gas will be wasted heating the hobby crucible furnace for very little gain in metal yield.

Steve Harmison failed to take a wicket in his 15 overs at Trent Bridge, but Durham's slim hopes of victory over Nottinghamshire were boosted after a flurry of late wickets in their First Division match in the Liverpool Victoria County Championship.

Durham's first innings was finally concluded when they declared on 404 for 8 on the third day, with Ottis Gibson stranded one run short of his half-century. The hosts' batsmen scored at around four an over in their attempt to force a result, with Harmison bowling his first overs in the competition as he steps up his recovery from a shin injury.

Jason Gallian's 112 meant the hosts reached 255 for 6, 149 runs behind with a day remaining. Gareth Breese took 4 for 77 off 20 overs.

In the Second Division, the spinners Ian Salisbury and Nayan Doshi took six wickets between them as Surrey looked to seize an advantage against Worcestershire at the the Oval.

Resuming on 55 without loss on the third day, the visitors reached 314 for 6 by stumps after half-centuries from Phil Jaques and Stephen Moore. Worcestershire were still 187 runs behind Surrey's first-innings total, with a draw most likely.

It was a similar story at Derbyshire, where Leicestershire reached 137 for 4 in their first-innings reply. The hosts declared on 401 for 6 and then reduced Leicestershire to 49 for 4, but John Sadler struck an unbeaten half-century, and they trail by 264 runs.

A GERMAN doctor who is facing manslaughter charges for killing eight of her patients is suspected of systematically inducing the deaths of hundreds of others in her care on a scale beyond the British mass murderer Dr Harold Shipman.

State prosecutors in Hanover said yesterday they were widening their investigation into Dr Mechthild Bach, aged 54, a physician at the city's Parcelus cancer clinic, who was charged last month with the manslaughter of eight of her patients with massive doses of morphine.

Dr Bach has denied the charges, and says she "accompanied people into death", but only after consultations with the patient and their family.

A spokesman for the prosecutors confirmed that the relatives of a further five of Dr Bach's patients who had died while in her care had asked for the deaths to be fully investigated. "The relatives are concerned that there was something odd about the treatment. Some of the cases go back to the 1990s," the spokesman said.

Dr Bach was suspended from duty after a routine audit at the hospital revealed above average orders for morphine and an unusually high death rate among her patients.

She has begun a lawsuit contesting her suspension.

German health insurance officials who looked at medical files from Dr Bach's clinic said they were shocked by the high number of deaths, and demanded action. "The contents of the files gave me goose pimples," admitted one official at the time. A state prosecutor's investigation led to Dr Bach being arrested a fortnight ago. Dr Bach insists she was relieving the pain of patients who were dying anyway.

However, state prosecutors are now concerned that during her 20- year career at the Parcelus clinic Dr Bach may have killed hundreds more patients with massive doses of morphine and the tranquilliser valium. They say that between January 2000 and June last year 251 patients died while under her care.

One case drawn to the attention of the investigators involved 63- year- old Christa Dudel, who was referred to Dr Bach's clinic in May 2001 suffering from shingles. As she was fit enough to walk, her adult children were confident that she would fully recuperate. Fourteen days later Mrs Dudel was dead. Dr Bach had diagnosed her complaint as water on the lung and had injected her with lethal doses of morphine, allegedly to alleviate her suffering, without consulting her relatives. After her death her children said: "None of us spoke to Dr Bach, none of us knew what she had been given and none of us had given permission for any treatment."

A 52-year-old man suffering from throat cancer died 16 days after being admitted to Dr Bach's clinic. After the patient complained of chest pains, Dr Bach allegedly administered four 20mg morphine injections daily and took him off all other cancer combating drugs.

Investigators later described the morphine dosage as "terminal sedation" and noted that the patient could have lived for "months, perhaps longer - even without chemo or radio therapy." Dr Bach claimed that her patient had complained of breathing difficulties and that as his condition had continued to deteriorate, she had decided to offer him the chance of "dying in dignity".