Quick Facts
- Related Topics:
- recycling
Adding us as a Preferred Source tells Google you trust our content, so our articles show up more often in your Google Search, Discover feed, and AI Overviews.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.
Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
scrap metal
A heap of scrap metal.
scrap metal
Also known as: discarded metal
scrap metal, used metals that are an important source of industrial metals and alloys, particularly in the production of steel, copper, lead, aluminum, and zinc. Smaller amounts of tin, nickel, magnesium, and precious metals are also recovered from scrap.
Impurities consisting of such organic materials as wood, plastic, paint, and fabric can be burned off. Metallic impurities may be desirable, inert, or undesirable. Undesirable ones may be diluted to tolerable proportions by the addition of pure metal, or they may be removed by refining. Scrap is usually blended and remelted to produce alloys similar to or more complex than those from which the scrap was derived.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Augustyn.
Discover how ordinary objects work, and expand your understanding of the familiar.
" height="20" alt="HEW Logo">
By clicking "Sign Up", you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.