The Differences Between Ferrous And Non-Ferrous Scrap Metal

What is ferrous and non-ferrous scrap metal? This is the most frequently asked question as many get confused with the terms but the answer to this question is very simple but still, the terms need proper explanation and the buying and the selling part of such scrap metals needs explanation. Ferrous metals are those alloys or metals that contain iron and non-ferrous are those metals that do not contain iron. If this would be a one mark question in your school question paper, then this answer would be perfect but not while buying or selling scrap metals. It is practically not possible to say which metal is ferrous metal and which is non-ferrous with just one look at the metal. We must take into account many different factors to conclude if the metal in question is ferrous or non-ferrous metal.

Ferrous Metal – This metal includes 5 kinds of steel namely mild steel, carbon steel, stainless steel, cast iron and wrought iron. They are mostly used for their tensile strength and durability, especially mild steel as it holds up some of the tallest skyscrapers and the longest bridges in the world. Ferrous metals are also used in the construction of houses, industrial containers, large-scale piping, automobiles, rails for railroad and transportation. Even most of tools and hardware you use or see in your houses are made of ferrous metal. As ferrous metals have high carbon content, so, when they are exposed to elements it forms a layer of rust above it. But this is not true with wrought iron or stainless steel as wrought iron is a pure form of iron that can resist oxidization and stainless steel has high chromium content preventing it from rusting. But still, it’s a general thumbs rule that if a metal rusts it is ferrous metal. Ferrous metals make up the maximum recycled materials in the world. In the year 2008 itself, 1.3 billion tons of steel were produced, and 500 million tons of that was made from scrap materials. So, if there are any scrap metals lying around at your home like an old knife that you do not use or some partially rusted metals do no throw them out as normal trash rather sell it to your local kabadiwala and make money out of scarp.

Non-ferrous metal - Non-ferrous metals include all the metals that do not contain iron in it like aluminium, brass, copper, nickel, tin, lead, and zinc. Non-ferrous metals do provide strength, but it is only used where its difference from ferrous metals is an advantageous factor. For example, non-ferrous metals are used when strength is required but the weight is a factor. Non-ferrous metals give strength but it is also light weight as it does not contain iron; thus, it is rust and corrosion resistant. It is used to make water pipes, road signs, and roofing. As for recycling, Aluminium is the third most recycled metal in the world. We have a habit of throwing away old aluminium utensils or exchange them for steel ones. Now you can also sell old, unused, or dented aluminium utensils online. As due to the digitalization many sites have come up where you can sell scrap iron online and earn from it.

There are people who collect scrap just to sell it off to earn some cash. So, if you are a scrap collector or an industry generating scrap your main motive is to sell the scrap. Sell it to your local kabadiwala or to any online scrap portal working with the kabadiwalas of your locality you need to know the pricing of the metals as ferrous and non-ferrous metals have different selling price. Ferrous scrap metals are in good supply, so the prices are generally lower than most non-ferrous metals. As steel and iron alloys are being recycled all over the globe at a very high rate thus, the prices for these materials remain constant on a month-month basis. As non-ferrous metals are hard to get and make so, the price of non-ferrous metals is always higher than that of ferrous metals. But for aluminium, the price remains constant as it is recyclable metal.

Selling metal scrap has become very easy now days with digitalization as you do not have to go from scrap dealer to scrap dealer to see who offers a better price for metal scrap. You can just go to one of the many online scrap selling sites and sell iron scrap online. They even buy non-iron scrap so you can sell any kind of metal scrap through those portals. These sites give you the exact rate for these scraps and do not cheat you.