‘St Pauls Place carpark Sheil, UK Architect: Ais Moesson ‘imperial War Museum North Manchester UK Arehtece Studia Dail Lbeskind MCH_ 26 ‘Aluminium was first produced in 1825, and by the lata 9th cantury a method had been found to mass produce the material by the electrolysis of alumina and cryalie Production process of raw mate- rial ‘Alamiiun is made from bauxite, which isessentally an hydrated alurina or aki miriam oxide, Mined bauxte i treated chemicaly to remove impurities and cbtain alurina, whichis alurinum oxide. This then reduce to aluminum by eects Because aluminum has a very hgh meting point (2450°C) a cannot be electoysed on its own, and 50 itis dssoved in molten yor lite. high letic current is pased through the alumina-ryoitemisture at around 1000°C, and the molten aluminium i tapped off Alinium aloys are ether formed iret flowed by continuous eastng or are cast into sali ingots The metal is then castinto ingots wich orm the basis for producing aluminium aloys. Pure aluminium is t00 sot fr stuctural use acs therefore combined with other metal o form aloys to increase i strength and hardness though reducing its dutty Magnes, silicon and manganese ae the most common additives. Avuriniam alloys make strong ightweight structural components In common with St Pals Pace car park Sheff LK Arehitec Alles & Mor see, aluminiue is a material that can be etruded. rolled and cast into compley shapes plates, sheets, extrusions and castings Properties and data “The main properties of karina alloys are as lows Density =2700 kgim3 (169 tit) Design strength Heat treated = 270 Nimm? (56 x 108 tbtff2) for extrusions and 235 Nimm?_ (49 x 108 Ib6it®) for 05 Nim? (2.1 x 108 lbfth2) for plate Young's Modulus = 70 kNimm2 (1.4 x 109 tofit2) Coefficient of thermal expansion = 2s 10K! (28x 106 OFT) Thermal conductivity = 200 Wim’ (116 8TUrheft OF) Specific heat capacity = 880 /kg'C (0.2! BTUlb OF)For comparison with other materials, aux ‘minium alloys have the following general properties: Lightness, weighing about a third that of steel High tense strength similar to that ofstel. + High impact resistance. (compared to steel) High corrosion resistance, but alu- minum requires protective coating in very poluted or severe atmospheric conditions. ‘Coatings are not appted solely for appear- « High heat conduction. High electrical conduction + Poor stiffness. + Low resstance to soft impact, but absorbs impact energy which locases damage, (Whereas a soft or low level impact, such as kick, would not damage a steel pane! it wil dent one in aluminium, ‘A igh impact. such asa car reversing into 2 panel would cause a large steel panel to buckle across its entire height and length but ‘one made of aluminium will again dent only around the impact area). “Thermal exparsion approximately wice that of steel Poor fre resistance Wade Wr Ati Setridges, Birmingham, UK Architect Future Systems Material selection Pure alumina and its alloys rein ‘wo broad groups: the non heat-treated alloys, aso called fuly softened alloys, whose strength is produced from being cold worked, and the heat-treated alloys whose strengthis produced by heat treatment The non heat-treated types are generally not as strong but have better corrosive resistance, Structural use of aluminium aloys is limited by two significant disadvantages they are more expensive to manufacture than steel and they deform more easiy under load. Aluminium alloys are more elastic than steel restricting their use to components and assembles where this is not a constraint Since the Young's Modulus of aluminium is Cone third that of stel buckling isan impor tant ise init structural use The potental of tis materia asa ful sructural material in buildings is beginning to be recognise. ‘The Media Centre at Lord's Cricket Ground, London, England is a recent notable example because ofthe fl structural use of aluminium ina large-scale bulking frame, Working with the material ‘On exposure tothe atmosphere, lu rinium forms a protective coating of lx iminium oxide, Under adverse conditions the ‘oxide fen can break down local but it sue MCH_ 27(Oita Stadium Japan Architect Kho Kurokawa 8 Associates, ally reforms toa greater thickness preventing further attack Aluminium can be exposed to the weather in nen-polluted environments and away fom marten conditions, without the need for adtional treatment provided the surface is maintained. Overtime it loses its inal bright appearance and assumes a ull gy sheen Aleinien sho he cleaned reguiarly to acid pits forming inthe materi surface, However one way to avoid tis isto anode or paint the material with a prop etary coating ‘Aluminium is susceptible to eectrolysc corrosion in contact with certain materi- als such as copper Therefore direct contact with copper and copperrch loys such as brass and bronze is avoided andthe material shouldbe used ina way that water doesnot flow onto it rom copper However water oni from aurinium to copper or lead isnot harmful There is no corrosive action bbetween aluminium and incor zine coat ings and gavarised suaces Some tinber preservatives contain compounds harmful to aluminivn. Untreated timber affects the material to a much eser extent. ‘Aluminium can be cut an dled riveted, bated, screwed and glued. The material an also be welded However welding usually done using the ful softened alloys, since this process can undo the work ofthe heat MCH_ 28 treatment in the other alloy types Since the design strength of the fully softened alloys shal that of the heat-treated types, the section sizes used in welded aluminium structures can often be similar to that of comparable steel structures, but with con: siderably less weight The design strength of the heat-treated llays hich is sma tothe bottom end of the design strength of steel, can be exploited in extrusions which require no welding in their manufacture, Exrusions can be used to form complex profies,such as those needed in window sections or walk way decking. and be much lighter than an equivalent member in steel The material can also be cast to form complex shapes that are ‘more economic in large quantities than an equivalent fabricated component. Anodising Anoing produces ane transucent fim over the fc of nium The ano- ing proces resutsin the replacement by electrocheical means ofthe metas atu cal formed oxide im bya dere ceri cay essa artic many times the thickness ofits natural equvaen Tm is ecremey hr ges added protection aginst abrasion aed reduces the adhesion Of dirt particles. Anodising is carried out by. immersing the alumina nan electroie and applying an electrical current, creating an ‘onde lier integral with the underlying meta ‘The anodic fm is porous and mmust be sealed Tris s done by imenersing the anodised alu- rinium in boling water or steam The ano- ised coating can be dyect the sealing then assists its colounfasiness Anodising should be carriad aut after welding The process of welding would otherwise break down the anodising process at heat-affected locations. Broken-down ancdising could resut in weld impurities that would impair its structural effectiveness ‘Aluriniu's natural fish, often referred ‘t0-as mil rsh, can be worked to produce «a polished, ground or brush-grained finish Etching gives a matt and non-diectional fish with no direct reflections, Anodisng gener- ally follows these processes, which increases durabilty and enhances long-term appear- ance. Brightening isnot suitable for architec- tural alloys which are only 995% aluminium because the brightening isnot uniform, CCherncal brightening on other alloys ds- solves and flattens surface irregularities found in extruded or sheet aluminium surfaces, and produces a mirror fish witha very hign reflectvty.t can be ancdised without dung the surfaceLuigi Coan desens Coatings Recyding Fran pn ae Aliminnin can be enated ina wie Auminivin i one of the easiest and range of colours through the use of pro: cheapest materials to recycle. The conversion prietary processes. Plastic coatings provide of scrap back to high-grade metal requires a durable pain surface: polyester powder _only about 5% of the energy needed to make coating is one of the most common finishes, the same amount of metal from bauxite 7 Plastic coatings are dip-coated, sprayed or i electrophoretically deposited underwater The oe electrostaticaly applied fish ensures that an even coat is built-up on the metal These paints fade and lose their shine with time, though the change is show and even. PVDF (potninyldene ci-fuoride), also called PVF2 in Europe, and powder coat- ings are most commonly used. PVDF is spray-applied finish, which is highly resistant to fading in sunlight, making it very suitable for external use where colour stabilty is ‘Tre Lightbox Woking UK Architect: Marks Bald arenitets an important consideration suchas in wall cladding, Powder coating is applied in an electrolytic process that provides a softer, and less expensive coating than PVDF. is not as resistant to fading in sunight, buts a harder fish and less expensive, making it suitable for both an economic external finish and excellent for internal use. Al these fn T [shes have methods of touching up surfaces that become exposed or are damaged dur ing instalation or use. but colour matching remains an important consideration. “The Publ, WestBromasichUK Architecc Wa Alsop MCH. 29