Topic: Aluminum metal in Packaging Food and Cosmetic Packaging Industry

Introduction
Aluminium is a chemical element with an atomic number of 13 and is found in the Boron
group with the symbol Al. The metal is soft, silvery white, ductile and none magnetic.
Aluminium is one of the most abundant metals in the earths crust, after oxygen and silicon and
makes about 8% of the crust by mass (Martchek, K., 2010).

Figure 1: Composition of earth's crust elements (Martchek, K., 2010)

Aluminium is a chemically reactive element that only reacts under extreme reducing
environments. Moreover, aluminium can be found combined with more than 270 minerals and
the chief ore of aluminium is bauxite (Jacobson, D., 2010). The structural components made
from aluminium and some of its alloys, are of major importance to the aerospace industry as well
as other areas of transportation industry. Some of the important compounds of aluminium on the
weight basis are the sulfates and the oxides. Some of the uses of aluminium include:

Medicinally, the aluminium as well as its salts is used in antacids, antidiarrheal, and
protective dermatological pastes. It is also found in cosmetics and deodorants.

Aluminium powder has been mainly used in different industries for dusting the skin
around a colostomy, ileostomy or caecostomy so as to prevent irritation caused by

proteolytic or irritant discharges (Jacobson, D., 2010).

Aluminium can also be used in households for the door knobs, kitchen utensils and also
on the window frames. Other sports equipments like golf clubs and tennis balls also use
aluminium (Jacobson, D., 2010). Furthermore, it is also used for construction purposes

like the bridges, pipes, casting, wiring, gutters and bars due to its low maintenance costs.
The metal alloys of aluminium are of significance in the construction of rockets and the
modern aircrafts. When it is evaporated in a vacuum, it forms a highly reactive coating
for both the radiant heat and the visible light. The coating later forms a protective layer of
oxide. These can be used to coat telescope mirrors and also in the making of decorative
toys packages and papers.

Most importantly, Aluminium has a major significance in the packaging industry as it is used in
making of foils, bottle caps, trays as well as cans made of metallic element. It is mainly preferred
in the food industry due to its mechanical and preservative ability, it does not affect the taste and
smell of the packaged food, and the metal is a non-toxic element (Bull, M., 2010). Therefore, it is
a suitable packaging material for both the food and the cosmetic industry based on its physical
and chemical aspects.
Structure

Figure 2: Atomic structure of Aluminium (Mohanty, P., 2006)

Aluminium metal has ductile and malleability properties due to the polycrystalline
structure. It is made up of grains or crystals which interlock when the metal is cooled from
molten state. Each specific grain comprise of a row of atoms arranged in the lattice order, where
they give each grain an isotropic structure (same in each direction) (Jacobson, D., 2010). There is
some grain boundaries formed during the cooling process although these grains are randomly
arranged. The crystal atoms are normally aligned making the whole metal isotropic similar to the
individual grains. Some dislocations tend to occur due to the regular lattice arrangement gaps
which are in between the atoms. The effect of dislocation is important in the fracture mechanics
and gives aluminium a number of significant properties (Martchek, K., 2010). These properties
of the structure are the ones which make aluminium to be exploited in the packaging industry.

Properties
Atomic Number:
Atomic Symbol:
Atomic Weight:
Electron Configuration:

The physical properties of aluminium like the softness, durable, ductility and malleability
ranges from silvery to dark gray depending on the roughness of the surface, the metal is
nonmagnetic and does not ignite. An aluminium metal which is freshly obtained from the ore
acts as a good reflector of the visible light with approximately 92% and an excellent reflector of
medium and for infrared radiation approximately 98% (Jacobson, D., 2010). The yield strength
of the pure aluminium is around 9MPa while those for the aluminium alloys are around 200MPa
to 600MPa (Bull, M., 2010). Aluminium metal is around one third the density and stiffness of
steel. It can easily be mechanized, cast, drawn and extruded into the different forms. Aluminium
has stacking fault energy of approximately 200mJ/m2. It acts as a good thermal and electrical
conductor having 58% conductivity (Grosso, M., 2011).
On the chemical properties, aluminium is corrosion resistant due to the formation of the
aluminium oxide layer that is formed when the metal is exposed to the air and this prevents
further oxidation. The corrosion resistance can be reduced greatly by aqueous salts when there is
a presence of dissimilar metals. Aluminium reacts with water in highly acidic solutions to form
hydrogen and in highly alkaline ones to form aluminates. A mirror made of aluminium has a high
reflectance of any other metal in the 200 to 400nm (UV) and 3000 to 10000 far infrared.
Aluminium metal can also be oxidized by water at temperature below 280 0C and produce
aluminium oxide hydrogen and heat (Jacobson, D., 2010).
2 Al + 6 H2O 2 Al (OH) 3 + 3 H2
In addition, aluminium has a higher boiling point of about 7000 0C as compared to both
glasses; with a boiling point of 1,650 C and plastic with a melting point below 200C (Grosso,
M., 2011). This just shows that aluminium can be able to withstand high temperatures especially
in the food canning as well during storage. Aluminium being a metal can combine both ductility

and still maintain its mechanical strength which is far much durable as compared to plastic and
glass which can break easily when tempered with.
Processing
A two stage process is involved in obtaining pure aluminium and it begins with the
extraction process of alumina from the bauxite ore where the bauxite is usually ground and
slurred with an essential caustic soda (NaOH) (Grosso, M., 2011). It is then pumped to huge
pressure tanks or digesters, here the NaOH reacts with certain impurities in the ore i.e. aluminous
minerals to form an insoluble component called sodium aluminate which are suspended and are
removed in the subsequent clarification process. In the next step, the smelting process involves
two major methods which include the Bayer-Hall-Hroult method and the Deville process
(Martchek, K., 2010). In the Deville process, it involves the direct reaction of aluminium
chloride and metallic sodium. This method has been applied on commercial basis and its use can
be traced back in the 19th century, however over the years this method has been greatly
abandoned pending to the more economical and effective Bayer-Hall-Hroult method or
commonly referred to as the Bayer process. In this method of aluminium processing, a nearly or
pure alumina; which is the aluminium oxide (Al 2O3) that is the final product obtained after
extraction of the bauxite ore, is essentially dissolved in molten electrolyte composed of sodium,
fluorine, and aluminium at 950 C or 1,750 F (Frees, N., 2008).. This molten mixture gets
electrolyzed to yield oxygen gas at the anode side and at the cathode where the aluminium metal
is obtained.
Ideally, the smelting cell where all this process takes place is a carbon lined steel box
which functions as the cathode and graphite row which acts as the anode. Aluminium is smelted
producing a fine molten compound which is poured into large crucibles after which its poured

into molds to produce aluminium ingots which are then subjected to further processing based on
its use. For instance, aluminium sheets and plates may be formed for use in the packaging
material. The ingots first get heated to achieve a rolling temperature, and then inserted into a
breakdown mill which rolls it back and forth until a desired sheet width is obtained. The sheets
are rapidly cooled to obtain maximum strength and then subjected to further processing for their
uses i.e. in packaging can and bottle manufacture. When producing aluminium foils for use in
packaging, the same procedure as for sheets is used, however the slab is usually rolled over on
several continuous mills with alternate cooling and heating units. At the end where the fine thin
foil is formed, it is rolled onto a coil (Jacobson, D., 2010).
Performance
Essentially, aluminium as compared to other packaging materials has a longer
preservation benefits. For instance, in food industry, the aluminium cans offer a perfect medium
especially in aseptic filling and canning of food sauces. They are temperature resistant and can
withstand sterilization temperatures of 121C (Frees, N. 2008). Furthermore, they offer an
excellent barrier against entry of gases i.e. oxygen, moisture, light and other contaminants. Its a
perfect material which besides being corrosion resistant provides the longest shelf life as
compared to many other packaging materials i.e. plastics and glass which may be susceptible to
breakage (Sorrentino, A., 2007). However, although aluminium is nonresistant to corrosion,
some acidic food components or cosmetics may react with it leading to transfer of materials into
the product, therefore lacquering with suitable components prevents this aspect (Jacobson, D.,
2010).
Green engineering

Figure 3: Aluminium manufacture and recycling (Frees, N., 2008)

Aluminium is one of the environmental friendly materials with over 75 percent of all
produced aluminium being still in use today (Frees, N. 2008). For instance, the mining of bauxite
for aluminium uses less than 1.5kg of fuel oil per ton either as diesel or in haul tracks, and also it
uses less than 5kWh electricity consumption per ton of the extracted bauxite (Jacobson, D.,
2010). Moreover, the average energy consumption in the processing of alumina is approximately
14.5 GJ per ton of alumina with an electrical energy amounting to150 kWh/t alumina. The
greenhouse emissions which results from the alumina processing account for about 1 ton of CO 2e
per ton of alumina (Martchek, K., 2010) produced which is not very high. This indicates how
green this metal is both in mining and processing. On the economic aspect, in U.S alone, the
aluminium industry produces approximately $65.5 billion each year direct into the economy
besides creating more than 600,000 jobs in the related industry. Furthermore, the industry
contributes about 1 percent of GDP (Jacobson, D., 2010) in the U.S economy and therefore this
signifies the economic significance of aluminium.

Different materials i.e. cans, packaging foods components like aluminium foils, bottles
and many other scrap aluminium metals may be recycled efficiently. First of all, when people use
aluminium packaged products or the scraps, they are collected for recycle. The used beverage
cans which are usually printed need to be removed off the paint and oils before subsequent
melting to enhance metal recovery (Frees, N., 2008). Therefore, the scrap is subjected to a
shredder which reduces the size of the cans while increasing the surface area. They are then
blown past a very powerful magnet which enables removal of steel and other metals if there is a
need to obtain pure aluminium. The aluminium shreds then move to the decorator which blows
very hot air through the shreds causing the ink and the coating to vaporize. After decorating, the
shreds are fed into a blazing furnace at 7000c; the melting point of aluminium, with addition of
chemicals i.e. NaOH which aid in removal of further impurities (Jacobson, D., 2010). A
flocculent of impurities called Dross rise on top of the molten aluminium and its scraped off.
The molten metal is then transferred to another furnace where it is poured into molds and ingots
formed for further uses.
Conclusion
Aluminium proves to be the most effective and efficient packaging material for both the food and
cosmetic industry. Based on its structural and physical ability to withstand any mild mechanical
damages or impact and its inability to react with most of the components, aluminium is therefore
an efficient packaging element. Furthermore, it can easily be recycled and thus prevents pollution
to the environment to a greater extent without forgetting that its greatly no toxic. Its versatility
as an efficient and environmentally friendly packaging material makes an important metal in
food and cosmetic industry considering its long and effective preservation capability.

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