{"id":39437,"date":"2023-09-18T09:05:00","date_gmt":"2023-09-18T09:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/?p=39437"},"modified":"2023-09-18T09:05:04","modified_gmt":"2023-09-18T09:05:04","slug":"sustainable-and-recyclable-steel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/acciaio-sostenibile-e-riciclabile\/","title":{"rendered":"Stainless steel: sustainability and eco-friendliness"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"translation-block\">Stainless steel is a <strong>sustainable material<\/strong> with important characteristics that can be used in various sectors and applications. Invented in the 19th century by the British metallurgical engineer <strong>Harry Brearley<\/strong>, stainless steel is composed mainly of <strong>iron, carbon and chromium<\/strong>, which can be combined with other alloys to increase its <strong>strength<\/strong> and expand its possible uses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">A material that does <strong>not oxidise<\/strong> and, above all, respects the environment. In what way can stainless steel be considered sustainable? What are its advantages \u2013 in terms of eco-sustainability \u2013 and how is it recycled? In this article we will answer all these questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why stainless steel is sustainable?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">Stainless steel is an <strong>easy-to-work material<\/strong> with a number of characteristics that help make it a sustainable metal:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>resists to high temperatures and temperature fluctuations;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>it does not get damaged easily;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>it needs little maintenance;&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>it is durable;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>it does not corrode.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">Thanks to these special features, stainless steel is able to <strong>extend its life cycle<\/strong> and, unlike other materials, does not need to be replaced before its time. A considerable advantage because, by choosing stainless steel, you contribute to the <strong>reduction of waste and its disposal<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">Not only that. Stainless steel has a <strong>low environmental impact<\/strong>: once produced, it causes no more polluting emissions and no more disposal and regeneration problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">Choosing, therefore, stainless steel for your production allows you to <strong>make excellent, easy-to-clean and long-lasting products<\/strong> that respect the planet. Because of its many characteristics, it is used in numerous sectors, <a href=\"https:\/\/metals.weggagency.com\/en\/acciaio-inox-nel-settore-alimentare-e-medicale\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/metals.weggagency.com\/en\/acciaio-inox-nel-settore-alimentare-e-medicale\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">from food to medical<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2023\/09\/image1.jpg.webp\" alt=\"acciaio-sostenibile\" class=\"wp-image-39452\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2023\/09\/image1.jpg.webp 800w, https:\/\/www.metals.it\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2023\/09\/image1-300x300.jpg.webp 300w, https:\/\/www.metals.it\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2023\/09\/image1-150x150.jpg.webp 150w, https:\/\/www.metals.it\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2023\/09\/image1-768x768.jpg.webp 768w, https:\/\/www.metals.it\/wp-content\/smush-webp\/2023\/09\/image1-12x12.jpg.webp 12w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" data-smush-webp-fallback=\"{&quot;src&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/www.metals.it\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/09\\\/image1.jpg&quot;,&quot;srcset&quot;:&quot;https:\\\/\\\/www.metals.it\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/09\\\/image1.jpg 800w, https:\\\/\\\/www.metals.it\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/09\\\/image1-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\\\/\\\/www.metals.it\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/09\\\/image1-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\\\/\\\/www.metals.it\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/09\\\/image1-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\\\/\\\/www.metals.it\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/09\\\/image1-12x12.jpg 12w&quot;}\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Recycling steel: a permanent material that can be reused<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">Stainless steel is a <strong>long-lasting material<\/strong>; one of the strongest and most durable in the world. This is due to the high <strong>percentage of chromium<\/strong> contained in its composition which, in contact with oxygen, creates a transparent film that increases the ability of this metal to <strong>resist wear, time and oxidation.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">Obviously, it is <strong>difficult to quantify the exact durability<\/strong> of stainless steel with a precise figure (even if we are talking about decades), because a lot depends on how it is used, the type of stainless steel chosen and any maintenance. What can be said with certainty, however, is that stainless steel is a <strong>durable and circular material<\/strong>, whose components always retain their original properties and are <strong>suitable to almost infinite reuse<\/strong> and regeneration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">As defined by the cultural organisation <strong>Fondazione Promozione Acciaio<\/strong>, stainless steel \u2018is a permanent, 100% recyclable material for multiple cycles without loss of properties\u2019, i.e. a durable metal that, unlike many others, <strong>\u2018can be remelted over and over again without ever losing any of its intrinsic properties<\/strong> such as strength, ductility, formability, which make it irreplaceable in multiple applications\u2019. All the metal bonds in the material\u2019s recycling stages are restored during the resolidification process, <strong>maintaining its qualities<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">Thus, at the end of their life cycle, items made of stainless steel can be <strong>dismantled, recovered<\/strong> or added to any scrap, to be recycled and live a new life in form of sheets, bars, tubes and other products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Steel recycling and disposal<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">As we have seen, stainless steel can be recycled numerous times, without ever losing its properties. <strong>Recycling of the industrial material<\/strong>, as <strong>Confindustria<\/strong> points out in its <em>Circular Economy<\/em> magazine, is easy to be done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">Once its life cycle is over, steel is taken to the foundry where the <strong>scrap is cleaned and melted<\/strong> to take on a new function. From recycled steel, in fact, semi-finished products can be obtained that are useful for making, for example, vehicle components, machinery, household appliances and building materials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">This virtuous cycle brings numerous benefits to the planet also because the <strong>continuous recycling of steel avoids the use of new raw material<\/strong>. Just think that in Italy in the year 2021 as many as <strong>450 thousand tonnes of raw material<\/strong> were saved, 6,625 TJ of primary energy and as many as 539 tonnes of CO2 were avoided. All data confirmed by <strong>Ricrea<\/strong> (National Consortium for Recycling and Recovery of Steel Packaging) reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">Moreover, if we consider all steel \u2013 not only stainless steel -, as far as recycling is concerned, <strong>Italy is certainly one of the most virtuous European countries<\/strong>. According to data released by Ricrea, the percentage of recycled steel in Italy reaches a good 82%, thus exceeding the target set by the European Commission of 70% of steel in urban waste and 80% in packaging by 2030. This unlimited recycling leads not only to savings in raw materials and energy, but also to an <strong>important reduction of waste <\/strong>otherwise destined to dump.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"translation-block\">Respecting the planet is also a priority for us. That is why, at Metal\u2019s, we have chosen to process a <strong>highly sustainable material<\/strong>, using <a href=\"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/tecnologia-ibrida-nel-nostro-parco-macchine\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/tecnologia-ibrida-nel-nostro-parco-macchine\/\">hybrid<\/a>, energy-saving, low environmental impact plants, which allow us to optimise production, reduce consumption by maintaining the quality of our work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Want to learn more?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Choose stainless steel for your production: discover all the advantages of this material: rely on Metal\u2019s to realise your projects.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>L&#8217;acciaio inox \u00e8 un materiale sostenibile dalle importanti caratteristiche che si pu\u00f2 utilizzare in diversi settori e applicazioni. Inventato nel XIX secolo dal tecnico metallurgico britannico Harry Brearley, l&#8217;acciaio inossidabile \u00e8 composto principalmente da ferro, carbonio e cromo, che possono essere abbinati ad altre leghe per aumentarne la resistenza e per ampliarne i possibili usi..&nbsp; [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":39447,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wds_primary_category":136,"footnotes":""},"categories":[136,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39437","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-approfondimenti","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39437","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39437"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39437\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39447"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39437"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39437"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metals.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39437"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}