What aluminum is and how to recognize it
Aluminum is a light, silvery gray metal that does not stick to a magnet. Scrap falls into two big families: wrought aluminum, which is rolled, extruded or drawn into wire (sheet, extrusions, cable), and cast aluminum, poured into molds (engine parts, housings, pistons). The ReMA (formerly ISRI) specifications circular sells them as separate grades1.
| Family | Where it shows up | ReMA grades |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical conductor (alloys 1350 and 1050) | Electrical cable and wire, at least 99.45% aluminum | Talon, Tall |
| Sheet and foil (1000, 3000 and 8000 series) | Lithographic printing sheet and new foil | Tablet, Tabloid, Terse |
| Extrusions (alloys 6063 and 6061) | Windows, frames and profiles | Tata, Toto, Tutu |
| Aircraft (2000 and 7000 series) | Aircraft sheet and parts | Tepid, Twist |
| Castings | Engine parts, housings and pistons from cars and aircraft | Tense, Trump, Twist, Tarry |
| Cans | Used beverage and food cans | Talc and its compressed forms |
Aluminum scrap grades
Each grade sets which alloys it accepts and how much iron, oil or plastic it tolerates1. These are the most common.
| Grade | ReMA name | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| New production extrusions | Tata | New extrusion scrap and butt ends of one alloy, typically 6063. Anodized is accepted; painted material and other alloys by agreement |
| Extrusions 10/10 | Toto | New and used 6063 extrusions with up to 10% painted and up to 10% 6061 alloy. No zinc corners, iron, felt, plastic, paper or thermal break |
| Old extrusions of one alloy | Tutu | Old extrusions of a single alloy (6063, 6061 or 7075), free of iron, thermal break, saw chips and zinc corners |
| Old sheet | Taint/Tabor | Used sheet of two or more alloys, free of foil, blinds, castings, cans, screen and plastic. Oil and grease up to 1%; up to 10% painted siding allowed |
| Used cans | Talc | Used beverage or food cans, free of other metals, foil, tin cans, plastic, paper and glass |
| Compressed cans | Taldon, Taldack, Taldork | Cans in bales, biscuits or briquettes of set density, magnetically separated. Any free lead is grounds for rejection |
| Aluminum radiators | Tally | All aluminum car radiators and condensers. Iron, plastic and foam no more than 1% of weight |
| Aluminum copper radiators | Talk | Aluminum and copper radiators, or aluminum fins on copper tubing, free of brass tubing and iron |
| Wheels | Troma | Single piece, unplated wheels of one alloy, free of weights, valve stems, tires and grease |
| Mixed castings | Tense | Clean castings, car and aircraft included, free of ingots, iron, brass and dirt. Oil and grease up to 2% |
| Auto castings | Trump | Easily identified car castings, free of iron, dirt, brass and bushings. Oil and grease up to 2% |
| Pistons | Tarry A, B and C | Clean (A), with struts (B), or with non aluminum attachments, on recovery basis (C) |
| Turnings | Teens (one alloy), Telic (mixed) | Free of loose iron, oil and moisture, with fines up to 3% through 20 mesh. Mixed turnings with more than 10% iron are not good delivery |
| Aluminum wire | Taste, Tassel, Tease | Bare wire, free of iron and screen. Steel cored cable (ACSR) is a separate grade, Trill, paid on recovery |
| Shredder aluminum | Zorba, Twitch | Nonferrous mix from shredding. Twitch is the one from cars. "Zorba 90" means about 90% nonferrous metal |
How to sort your aluminum
The magnet
Aluminum does not stick. If a piece sticks, it carries iron: screws, inserts, bushings or brackets. Remove it before you sell.
Extrusion or casting
An extrusion has the same cross section along its length and bends; a casting has complex shapes, a grainy surface and cracks when struck. They are different grades1.
Paint and anodizing
Anodized extrusions grade as new extrusions. Painted ones go by agreement or into 10/10, which accepts up to 10% painted material1.
Window frames
Remove the plastic thermal break, felt, gaskets and zinc corners: extrusion grades do not accept them1.
Cans on their own
Separate aluminum cans from tin cans, which do stick to a magnet, and do not mix cans with sheet: old sheet does not accept containers1.
Radiators
All aluminum radiators and aluminum radiators with copper tubes are different grades. Remove plastic tanks and iron brackets1.
Aluminum cans: used beverage cans
Used beverage cans (UBC) are drink or food cans after use. They are sold loose, baled, in biscuits or shredded, and in compressed or shredded forms they must be magnetically separated and free of steel, lead, caps, plastic, glass, wood and trash1.
- Loose (Talc). Used cans free of other metals, foil, tin cans, plastic bottles, paper and glass.
- Baled (Taldon). At least 14 pounds per cubic foot (225 kg/m³); at most 17 (273 kg/m³) unflattened and 22 (353 kg/m³) flattened.
- Biscuits (Taldack). Blocks of 35 to 50 pounds per cubic foot (562 to 802 kg/m³), each no heavier than 60 pounds (27.2 kg).
- Shredded (Talcred). From 12 to 17 pounds per cubic foot (193 to 273 kg/m³), with at most 5% fines.
In compressed or shredded cans, any free lead is grounds for rejection and no aluminum other than used beverage cans is accepted1.
What lowers the price of aluminum
- Iron. Screws, inserts, bushings and brackets. Castings must come without iron, and pistons with non aluminum attachments are paid on recovery1.
- Plastic, rubber and foam. Thermal breaks, gaskets and radiator tanks. In aluminum radiators, everything that is not aluminum adds up to 1% of weight at most1.
- Oil and grease. Up to 1% in old sheet and 2% in castings; above that the material no longer meets the grade1.
- Mixed alloys. Extrusions of one alloy are a separate grade from mixed ones, and aircraft sheet (2000 and 7000 series) does not belong in old sheet1.
- Paint and coatings. They change the grade of extrusions and sheet; foil laminated with plastic or paper is sold on metal content1.
- Sealed or pressurized items. Airbag canisters and any sealed or pressurized item are not accepted in shredder aluminum1.
Reference prices for each grade, with their date, are on scrap metal prices. Payment is calculated from the certified weighbridge weight.
Why aluminum is recycled
Aluminum can be recycled again and again with no theoretical limit; each cycle loses a small part of the metal to oxidation and mill operations2.
- 95%of the energy needed to make new aluminum is saved by recycling it 2
- 75%of all the aluminum ever produced is still in use, approximately 2
- 76%is the global aluminum recycling efficiency rate, according to the IAI in 2020 3
- 71%recycled aluminum is the average content of a beverage can made in the United States 4
In the United States, 96.7% of the recycled can aluminum goes back into new cans, but only 43% of cans were recycled in 2023; aluminum is 3% of the weight of a household's recyclables and nearly 30% of their value4. See the impact of recycling scrap.
Bluegreen's impact certificate covers steel and stainless steel today. For aluminum it will be issued once emission factors with a published source exist. See how it is calculated.
Recycled aluminum in Mexico
Mexico exports secondary aluminum, the kind made by melting scrap: in 2024 it was 10% of the country's mineral and metallurgical exports, which added up to 17.7 billion dollars. Only copper (40%), silver (21%) and iron products (12%) ranked higher on that list5.
If you also have copper or steel, see copper scrap and steel and its scrap.
How to sell your aluminum to Bluegreen
- 01
Tell us what you have
Fill in the form with the type of aluminum (extrusions, sheet, cans, radiators or castings), photos and an approximate weight. If you are not sure, choose "Not sure what it is" and send photos.
- 02
Get the offer
Once your lot is published, you get an offer within 24 hours. Each lot is assessed on its own.
- 03
Pickup
We collect with our own trucks in any state of Mexico. Projects outside the country are evaluated.
- 04
Weighing
The material is weighed on a certified weighbridge.
- 05
Payment and paperwork
We pay by bank transfer after weighing, never in cash, with a CFDI 4.0 invoice and a Carta Porte 3.1 waybill.
See how to sell scrap metal step by step and what regulation requires at each step.
Frequently asked questions
How much is aluminum scrap per kilo?
It depends on the grade: extrusions, sheet, cans, radiators and castings are priced differently, and iron, plastic and oil are deducted. Reference prices are on scrap metal prices.
What are aluminum extrusions?
Extruded aluminum: windows, frames and profiles, usually alloy 6063. New extrusions of one alloy are the Tata grade, and those with up to 10% painted and up to 10% 6061 are 10/10 (Toto)1.
Do you buy aluminum cans?
Yes. Bluegreen buys cans lot by lot. Keep them apart from tin cans, which stick to a magnet, and from trash1.
Can I sell aluminum radiators with the plastic tanks on?
The aluminum radiator grade allows no more than 1% iron, plastic and foam combined1, so it is worth removing the tanks and brackets. Radiators with copper tubes are a different grade.
How do I tell aluminum from stainless steel?
Neither sticks much to a magnet, but aluminum is far lighter and softer: it scratches easily. To know the exact alloy, a spectrometry analyzer is used.
Why keep castings apart from extrusions?
Because they are different grades: extrusions are sold by alloy and mixed castings accept up to 2% oil and grease1. Kept apart, each is valued in its own grade.
Can aluminum be recycled many times?
Yes, with no theoretical limit; each cycle loses only a small part to oxidation2.
Do you collect in my state?
Yes. Bluegreen collects with its own trucks in every state of Mexico and evaluates projects outside the country.
Sources
Every figure on this page comes from a third party publication. Names and logos belong to their owners and only identify the source; they do not imply endorsement.
- Recycled Materials Association (ReMA)ReMA's ISRI Specifications Circular, Guidelines for Nonferrous Scrap (NF-2025), Aluminum (2026)Open the publication
- The Aluminum AssociationSustainability: Recycling (2026)Open the publication
- International Aluminium Institute (IAI)Aluminium Recycling Factsheet (2020)Open the publication
- The Aluminum AssociationThe Aluminum Can Advantage: Sustainability Key Performance Indicators (with the Can Manufacturers Institute) (2024)Open the publication
- U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)Mexico, 2024 Minerals Yearbook country review (Alberto A. Perez, National Minerals Information Center) (2026)Open the publication
