recycling metal
Metals Are Not a Renewable Resource
Metals are not a renewable resource. They are found in rock, called ore, which is a part of the earth’s crust. There is a finite amount of metal in the earth, and there is a financial and environmental cost to mining and refining it into a usable product.
To make metal, ore is identified in the bedrock, mined, broken up and ground down into tiny particles which are then separated into the desirable metal and gangue, or the leftover rock and minerals. Metals are separated and removed from ore with magnets, chemicals such as sulfuric acid, or with heat. Vast amounts of resources are used to mine and refine these virgin metals. There is also a cost to the environment while mining and refining, even though damage is monitored and limited very carefully these days.
Recycled metal is unusable waste or scrap metal that is carefully separated by type, and then melted down either alone or with other raw materials, and poured, cooled and shaped into metal that can be used again to create new products. Recycling means less ore must be mined and processed to meet the demands of consumers and manufacturers. It also means that the energy and environmental impact of the mining happens once, while the metal is used again and again.
Recycling your scrap metal from your business or home doesn’t make metal a renewable resource, but it does make the best possible use of the metal we have!
Contact Mann Metals at 248-960-1200 for more information on recycling your scrap metal.
Ferrous and Nonferrous Metals
Often, scrap metal buyers or scrap yards will say they purchase and recycle both ferrous and nonferrous metals. What does that mean?
Ferrous metal is a metal containing iron. Ferrous metal can be sorted with magnets, and is easier to recycle. Mann Metals accepts many types of ferrous metals for recycling. Here are a few:
- Steel: a mixture of iron and carbon, often with other trace metals
- Stainless Steel: includes more chromium for rust resistance and shiny appearance
- Carbide: an extremely hard steel that includes tungsten
- High Speed Steel: a heat treated steel with carbon, manganese, molybdenum, and tungsten
- Cast Plate Iron: Has a lower percentage of carbon, and is easier to pour and cast.
Nonferrous metal contains no iron, or only trace amounts of iron. Mann Metals accepts a wide variety of nonferrous metals, including but not limited to:
- Aluminum: everything from window frames, auto wheels, and cans, to cast barbeque grills
- Copper: insulated and uninsulated wire, auto radiators, plumbing scrap, and decorative items
- Brass: an alloy of copper and zinc, varying the ratio produces different colors/attributes
- Nickel Alloys: such as Hastelloy X, with nickel, chromium, molybdenum, and traces of iron
Mann Metals also accepts some mixed-metal items, such as e-waste, catalytic converters, auto radiators, and others. Contact us and we’ll be happy to tell you what we accept, and how much we pay.
Mann Metals provides top prices and prompt payment.
Monday – Friday 8:00 am to 5:00 pm
Saturday 8:00 am to 12:00 pm
Call us today — (248) 960-1200
