SUMMARY

In the recent decades, sustainability has emerged as a crucial concern for governments and industries worldwide. While the political sphere appears to take the lead in the pursuit of a greener world from a societal standpoint, industries play a pivotal role in implementing innovative technologies. However, certain industries still heavily rely on natural gas consumption for their operations.
Metal manufacturers, in particular, face significant energy demands due to their melting processes, which have historically necessitated the use of fossil fuels. While the steel industry has started embracing electrification in its production, the secondary aluminum industry faces challenges in implementing this technology due to ongoing research and differences in material properties. Consequently, the aluminum sector is compelled to enhance its current processes in the race towards sustainability until new technologies become viable. One prominent industrial-scale approach to address carbon footprint is the recovery of waste heat. This method seeks to capture excess heat generated during various industrial processes and utilize it to improve energy efficiency, thereby reducing greenhouse emissions. This thesis presentation focuses on examining the current workflow of secondary aluminum manufacturing, with a specific emphasis on rolled sheet production. By analyzing combustion intensive equipment involved in the process, it aims to evaluate machine efficiencies and estimate the recoverable energy present in the flue gasses. Additionally, this thesis intends to identify deficiencies and energy losses throughout the production process and propose strategies that can effectively reduce the industry’s global carbon footprint.