Material Networks

Aluminum, the Metal of the Athropocene

On a sunny June Thursday, I meet with my creative partner in our studio in Rothenburgsort, a post-industrial neighborhood of Hamburg, to work on our most recent commission: a series of temporary urban furniture for an experimental plaza design. We take the cargo elevator to a refreshingly chilly cellar and retrieve parts of an exhibition set design we built in winter. The notice of the commission was very short, too short to conceptualize and order new materials, hence the idea to use a building system from the previous project. Piece by piece, we pass to each other aluminum pipes of various lengths and countless boxes of steel joints, used to connect the tubes. On the way to the elevator, my carefully arranged stack of pipes, intended to increase my carrying efficiency, becomes unstable and disintegrates falling loudly on the concrete floor of the cellar. The vibration of the unexpected rambunctious sound resonates in my ears as I angrily pick up each pipe. It seems like since the founding of the creative practice, eighty percent of my work is schlepping objects back and forth, between floors, buildings, cities. Lifting the metal pieces however, I start to become grateful, that, although sturdy, they are exceptionally light. About half an hour later all our building materials happily arrive on our studio floor, as we begin to sort them out by size and combine them, tightening the joints with various sizes of hex keys. Gradually, as the previous exhibition pieces transform into sitting structures, tables and a kiosk, I notice the black stains covering my hands, surely a result of oxidation on the surface of the metal. I also observe miniature aluminum pieces entering the skin on my fingertips, a reason I decide to handle the material solely while wearing gloves. At the end of the day, all our designs are assembled, and I dive deeper into the, what seems like, near perfect attributes of the metal I just worked with: versatile, light, infinitely recyclable, produced locally in Hamburg. In the construction industry aluminum is most used in the form of alloys in windows and façade cladding. The metal has likewise been essential in the development of the so-called curtain wall, a non-structural exterior surface of modern skyscrapers [1]. In my personal work in design agencies, I have also seen it being used in temporary architecture and trade shows, where the weight and ease of transport is essential to the construction concept [2].

Although aluminum is the third most common metal in the Earth’s crust, it never appears in its pure form. Instead, it is mined primarily as bauxite, a red-orange color ore, and extracted in a complex and highly energy-consuming process, discovered at the end of the nineteenth century [3]. The mining, primarily in the developing countries, causes deforestation, compulsory land acquisition, shortage of water and respiratory disease for populations working low wages and living in the proximity of the mines. Only about half of the raw material can be converted into aluminum oxide, a white powder needed to produce the pure metal through electrolysis. The by-products are deposited as so-called red mud – a highly alkaline concentrate, detrimental to the environment and human health. Electrolysis, apart from being one of the most energy-thirsty industrial procedures known to date, generates a significant amount of carbon dioxide and other fossil waste [4]. Due to the complex pathways of its raw materials and reliance on nonrenewable energy, aluminum can be labeled accurately as the metal of the Anthropocene. Primary aluminum is a metal produced in the electrolysis process. It is the basis for products such as sheets, coils, tubes and profiles as well as for casting alloys [3]. Although aluminum can easily be melted and used to produce so-called secondary aluminum, a large portion of the production of the material still comes from the smelters. This is due to a rising demand for the metal in various industries such as automotive, packaging and construction and because of its longevity. Once integrated, for example in a facade, the metal doesn’t come back to the cycle for fifty to sixty years. There is simply not enough used aluminum to satisfy the demand.

At the end of June, I get to put on a heavy visitor’s coat, a helmet and protective glasses and head over to the production hall of a German primary aluminum producer. Upon entry, a landscape I did not expect unfolds in front of me. The hall is very quiet, with a comfortable temperature (the day I visited, although in the midst of summer, is relatively cold). After a short warning to not touch anything, as it could be unexpectedly hot, I head to the electrolysis furnaces. The corridors of the hall stretch seemingly infinitely in both directions, with a rhythmical symmetric placement of the ovens. The view is somewhat surreal, an environment taken out of a sci-fi movie. Only three people work in this humongous space, operating a monstrous crane which glides seamlessly on the ceiling, opening furnaces to refill the aluminum oxide powder and replacing the burnt-out anodes. Anodes, made mostly of carbon, conduct the heat required inside the ovens. Every three minutes, the astonishing stillness of the setting is interrupted by the bubbling of the furnaces as aluminum oxide powder enters the electrolysis. Because of the chemical processes of electrolysis, a magnetic field is generated around the ovens. I am given metal paper clips to observe the changing direction of the pieces as I walk around. The forces are weirdly sensible also inside my body. This is the reason I was advised to leave all my magnetic credit cards at the management office, due to the likelihood of their functionality getting affected. Visually, the structure of the furnaces is astonishing, covered in a light layer of glimmering silver powder and surrounded by massive flat electricity conductors. I learn, that aluminum conductors are used instead of more familiar copper wires, due to their competitive cost. The head of electrolysis takes me to a non-functioning furnace, where I am given a chance to go inside the container and examine all the layers of materiality inside, an experience which leaves me in awe of the industrial scale as compared to the insignificance of one individual.

Before vacuum cleaner-like machines can extract the pure silver liquid from the bottom of the furnace, extraordinary amounts of energy need to be fed to the oven. To produce only one ton of aluminum, the electricity required is as much as ten one-person households in Germany use on average per year [5]. The producer is thus one of the biggest electricity users in the region, utilizing about as much energy in 2021 as the entire city of Lübeck [6]. The furnaces need constant and reliable current, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. If an unplanned power cut lasts longer than a few hours, the material in the ovens hardens, and they are no longer operational. I was told it would take about half a year of work with the help of excavators and chisels to remove the sediment and prepare the furnace for reconnection. This is the primary reason, the tour guides say, why available green energy sources such as windmills or solar power, relying on changing environmental conditions, are not a viable option for the company. Already due to difficulties in accessing reliable affordable energy, the aluminum plant operates only at 30% capacity with many furnaces turned off and workers redirected to other tasks. For every ton of aluminum, between 30 to 50 kg of fossil-fuel reliant furnace waste material is generated, in addition to about 1,6t CO₂ or as much as one car in Germany emits on average in an entire year [7]. According to the representatives of the company, the plantuses carbon capturing technologies and is interested in investing in green energy sources. However, they say, as long as there is no change in politics, helping them secure such an investment against bigger concerns, the dirty reality of future aluminum production is going to be moved abroad, outside the EU, where the environmental policies are less limiting.

It is likely that most of the aluminum oxide powder required to conduct electrolysis in the German company was supplied by a refinery in Stade, the only plant in Germany processing bauxite. The manufacturer is said to currently have their production paused, due to raising gas prices and thus difficulty in securing profitable production. However, this information was not confirmed by direct representatives of the company. Aluminium Oxid Stade GmbH is known for its enormous red mud depository – an area of around 156 hectares, or about 89 football fields, visible from even distant satellite photos of the region. This usually toxic compound is neutralized by the refinery, in, what is described by the representatives of the Aluminum Association Germany, an exemplary and unique process. The depository has been portrayed as robust, with special methods used to dry the outside layers of the red mud, increasing the stability of the dam. Every year the producer conducts measurements, ensuring groundwater is not affected by the mud. The landscape inside the depository is entirely different from what one could expect on such an industrial site: surrounded by the orange color sludge grow birches, while various species of birds settle in the perimeter of the basin. The paradoxical idyll can be disturbed solely by the thought that, as long as primary aluminum production continues, the mud depository will have to continue to expand and accommodate the bauxite waste; that means about half of the volume of all imported ore ends up here. Nearly all the bauxite entering Germany and processed in Stade comes from the Republic of Guinea [8]. This small West African country is the third world producer of the ore, after Australia and Brazil [4]. The peculiar monopoly dates back to the times when the Stade plant was owned by the state-run Vereinigte Aluminium Werke Deutschland. While developing an industrial plan for the manufacturing of aluminum, the company purchased a part of a mine in the Boke region of Guinea. To ensure a continuous production chain, the firm developed a port in Stade, where the bauxite could be delivered directly by sea. In addition to the refinery, which functions to this day, smelters were also present on the site. Reliable and abundant energy was provided by a nearby nuclear energy plant, which is no longer in operation today. Even certain chemicals, such as natron, needed for extracting the aluminum oxide powder from the ore, were arranged by an industrial cooperation with a neighboring chemical plant. Although much of the initial operation of the Stade complex ceased and the plant changed owners, the vast majority of bauxite still comes from the Republic of Guinea. This is due to the high quality of the material and high percentage of aluminum in the ore. Moreover, throughout the years, the Stade machines got accustomed to the Guinean supply. Through different content of silicon, titanium or oxygen, as in the case of other sourcing countries, the instruments would need to be newly calibrated. Given the complex and time-consuming nature of this process, the producers persist in importing bauxite from a single supplier [8].

The Republic of Guinea is a small country located on the northwestern shore of Africa. The former French colony, gaining official independence in 1958, faces a complex and tumultuous history. The population of diverse ethnic groups with limited sense of national belonging has struggled to establish a functioning democracy and economically sustainable position, as is often the case in states damaged by European imperialism. Following nearly a century of exploitative presence of French colonialism Guinea’s governing forces oscillate between liberal but corrupt administrations and military juntas. The soil of the state is uniquely rich in bauxite, with the first mine starting to export the ore shortly after independence. The pioneer facility was owned by the government of Guinea but it shared ownership with French, American, Swiss and Canadian companies, as well as the German Vereinigte Aluminium Werke Deutschland, the first owner of the Stade refinery [4, 9]. A typical aspect of foreign companies’ presence in the mining industry of Guinea is the sole focus on exporting the raw material, without interest in supporting an economically sustainable refinery infrastructure within the country. Buyers of bauxite rely on controlling the majority of the commodity chain and process the ore in their countries of origin, arguing that the unpredictable government of Guinea would endanger their access to aluminum oxide. Certainly, allowing Guinea to benefit from refining the ore, would also threaten their position of power. As a result, a significant value stemming from the production of aluminum is transferred abroad, leaving the local population with access solely to low mining wages and an insufficient economic base with a massive dependence on foreign countries. Following the ideals of the Resource Nationalism movement, the military government of Guinea repeatedly attempted to pressure international corporations to develop plans of processing bauxite within its borders, but due to its realistically inferior standing, its threats remain unanswered [10].

The current sourcing mine of the Stade refinery is operated by the Compagnie des Bauxites de Guinée (CBG), located in Sangaredi, a North-Western town in the Boke region of Guinea. The company, whose origins date back to colonial times, is 45% owned by the Government of Guinea, with the rest of the shares divided among a network of other aluminum producers, including Dadco – an international group currently owning the Aluminium Oxid Stade refinery. As the largest bauxite exporter in the country, CBG is frequently named as one of the most influential institutions in Guinea, with representatives present in the national politics. Although criticized for corruption and neglect in living and working conditions, it is widely considered as one of the best paying facilities, averaging salaries of around 270 USD per person per month, in addition to supplying housing and food provisions. This is, however, the case for the fortunate few, who are employed permanently and live within the premises of the company. Temporary employees, particularly in the East coastal city of Kamsar, where the bauxite is prepared for export, live outside the business territory, often without access to electricity or running water, receiving less than a national minimum wage of 60 USD a month. Upon retirement or in case of accidents or death even the official workers and their families lose access to the provisions and are forced to rely solely on the low state pension [4]. The environmental and health impact of the CBG mine in Sangaredi, as well as the neighboring coastal city Kamsar, are dire. Locals suffer from persistent eye irritation due to the dust from the mines, pain in the chest and chronic inflammation of the sinuses. A very high population density and poor sanitation around the mine result in an increased rate of sexually transmitted diseases and the spread of infections such as cholera. Because of deforestation of the mining regions and subsequent changes in the microclimate, farming has become challenging. Blasting used in preparation of new mining areas scares wild animals and hinders hunting, damages buildings, and changes streams of water in the nearby villages. Even in the reforested, ‘returned’ areas, biodiversity remains low. Populations relocated for the expansion of the mines are rarely compensated, as the process relies on written complaints in French, which the majority of the affected people cannot understand. In addition, villages surrounding the Sangaredi mine find themselves often ‘locked’ between the mining areas, with no access to the main road. Restitutions are frequently symbolic and don’t meet the inhabitants’ real needs. The untreated toxic waste from the mining and the limited processing facilities flows freely into the river, damaging fishing reserves and contaminating drinking water [4, 9]. The CBGmine in Sangaredi is set for expansion, planning to double its production until 2028. At the beginning of 2019, thirteen local communities neighboring the mine, submitted a complaint with the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman, an organization monitoring human rights violations in projects funded by the World Bank Group [10, 11]. The issues described in the report relate to poor compensation for loss of land and resulting reduced income, air and water contamination as well as physical safety concerns. The applicants oppose the expansion on the basis, that existing destructive conditions of the CBG mine have not been addressed [10]. The dispute has led the Compliance Advisor Ombudsman to facilitate a series of workshops and mediate between the affected parties and the company. The conflict resulted in the establishment of an agreement on the dynamite blasting, which included remediation of past losses and prevention of future destruction [12, 13]. An independent overseer was appointed to monitor the impact of the blasting and continues to recommend preventive measures. The resolution process is ongoing and a multitude of issues such as access to safe drinking water are yet to be resolved [13].

The aluminum pipes I was using in my project have inspired me to dive into the complex story of the production of their material. The metal has traveled a great distance to end up in my oxidation stained hands. It has most probably visited a smelter in Germany, boiling in the furnaces, eating up tremendous amounts of electricity. Before that, its particles could have been a part of a powder, produced in Stade from orange slime. In that case, its fragments embedded in the ore, were meticulously extracted from the soil of Guinea, wandering in containers through the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea. Each actor, institution, government and company enroute of the aluminum story is intertwined in a system of power, capital, environmental damage and human rights violations. It is impossible to point out one rotten element of this convoluted chain, its roots stemming from colonialist networks, established multinational industries, growing demand and interests in maintaining the hardened status quo. As long as no global green energy source is established and neocolonialist structures dismantled, aluminum will remain an unsustainable material. Aware of the laborious process of its production, designers shall approach its use with upmost respect.

[Licensed under: CC – BY – SA]

Sources:

[1]  Ashby, J. 1999. “The Aluminium Legacy: The History of the Metal and Its Role in Architecture.” Construction History 15, pp. 79-90.
[2]  MUTABOR. 2019. Volkswagen – IAA. MUTABOR. www.mutabor.de/de/work/volkswagen-iaa/
[3]  Gesamtverband der Aluminiumindustrie e.V. 1956. Aluminium Zentrale Merkblatt – Der Werkstoff Aluminium. Gesamtverband der Aluminiumindustrie: Düsseldorf. 
[4]  Knierzinger, J. 2017. Bauxite Mining in Africa: Transnational Corporate Governance and Development. Springer International Publishing: Cham. 
[5]  Pawlik, W. 2023. Jährlicher Stromverbrauch eines 1-Personen-Haushalts in Deutschland nach Gebäudetyp im Jahr 2023. Statista. https://de.statista.com/statistik/daten/studie/558239/umfrage/stromverbrauch-einen-1-personen-haushalts-in-deutschland/
[6]  EnergyMap. Hansestadt Lübeck. http://www.energymap.info/energieregionen/DE/105/119/472.html
[7]  Janson M. 2022. So viel CO2 stoßen Autos aus. Statista. https://de.statista.com/infografik/25742/durchschnittliche-co2-emission-von-pkw-in-deutschland-im-jahr-2020/
[8]  Anonymous (Member of Aluminium Deutschland e.V.). Interview by author. Via Zoom. 28 June 2023. 
[9]  Knierzinger, J. Interview by author. Via Zoom. 04 July 2023. 
[10]  Centre de Commerce International pour le Developpement (CECIDE). 2019. Complaint concerning IFC loan to the “Compagnie des Bauxites de Guinée” (CBG). 
[11]  CAO Compliance Advisor Ombudsman. CAO About Us. https://www.cao-ombudsman.org/about-us
[12]  CAO Compliance Advisor Ombudsman. 2020. “Ground rules agreed by the Parties for mediation.” Dispute Resolution. Sangaredi. https://www.cao-ombudsman.org/sites/default/files/downloads/Guinea-CBGGroundRulesAgreementsigned.pdf
[13]  CAO Compliance Advisor Ombudsman. 2021. “Agreement on Dynamite Blasting.” Dispute Resolution. Sangaredi. https://www.cao-ombudsman.org/sites/default/files/downloads/CBG01_Agreement%20on%20Dynamite%20Blasting_signed_0.pdf