Many people know that aluminum profiles are "light", but they may not be clear about the scientific principles behind them. Aluminum profiles are metal materials made from pure aluminum (purity 99.0% -99.9%) with added alloying elements such as silicon, magnesium, copper, etc., through four major processes of "melting casting extrusion surface treatment". Their core advantages stem from unique material properties:
1. The "contradictory unity" of lightweight and high-strength
The density of pure aluminum is only 2.7g/cm ³ (about one-third of steel), but through alloying treatment (such as 6061 profiles containing 1% magnesium and 0.6% silicon), the tensile strength can be increased from 90MPa of pure aluminum to 310MPa, which is equivalent to withstanding 3.1 tons of pressure per square centimeter. This characteristic makes aluminum profiles a "weight reducing tool" - after replacing steel with aluminum profiles, the weight of the vehicle body can be reduced by 15% -20%, and the range can be directly increased by more than 10% for new energy vehicles; The high-speed rail carriage adopts an
Aluminum Profile structure, which reduces energy consumption per kilometer compared to steel cars by 15%.
2. Natural corrosion-resistant "oxidation armor"
Aluminum will quickly form a dense oxide film (Al ₂ O3) with a thickness of about 0.01-0.1 μ m in the air, which can prevent further oxidation of the internal aluminum. If stronger corrosion resistance is required, surface treatment can also be upgraded: anodizing (film thickness 10-25 μ m) is suitable for humid environments, such as door and window profiles in Southeast Asia during the rainy season; Fluorocarbon spray coating (film thickness ≥ 40 μ m) has extremely strong weather resistance. This type of profile is used in the Middle East desert region and has no significant fading or corrosion for 20 years, far exceeding the performance of traditional coatings.
3. Infinite circulation of "environmentally friendly materials"
Aluminum is the only metal that can be 100% infinitely recycled without performance degradation. The energy consumption of recycled aluminum production is only 5% of that of primary aluminum, and for every ton of aluminum recovered, 9.6 tons of CO ₂ emissions can be reduced. This is also why, under the European and American carbon tariff (CBAM) policies, recycled aluminum profiles are more favored - leading Chinese companies such as Nanshan Aluminum have a carbon footprint of as low as 380kgCO ₂/ton for recycled aluminum profiles, which is more than 50% lower than that of native aluminum profiles, helping overseas buyers save a lot of carbon tax costs.
