Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to power a TV for three hours.

The production of aluminum relies on the Hall-Héroult process, which was discovered in 1886. This method involves extracting aluminum from bauxite ore through electrolysis, a process that requires massive amounts of electricity to break the chemical bonds between aluminum and oxygen. In contrast, recycling aluminum simply involves melting the metal, which requires only 5% of the energy needed for primary extraction.According to the Aluminum Association and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), recycling a single can saves about 1.5 kilowatt-hours of electricity. This is sufficient to run a standard LED television for several hours or a 100-watt incandescent bulb for 15 hours. The efficiency is so high that the energy saved by the U.S. aluminum industry through recycling annually could power the entire city of Chicago for more than a year.Furthermore, aluminum is uniquely sustainable because it is 'infinitely recyclable.' Unlike plastic, which degrades each time it is processed, aluminum retains its structural integrity and purity forever. This is why approximately 75% of the 1.5 billion tons of aluminum produced since the late 19th century is still circulating in the global economy today. This circularity makes it one of the most environmentally friendly materials in the manufacturing sector.