Car crushing

Car crushing and therefore recycling cars is both economically and environmentally beneficial and is a vital link in the world's industrial infrastructure. With the majority of a junk car being made up of steel (65%) , and the price of scrap metal averaging around $250 per ton, auto recycling is a multibillion dollar industry.

Once cars are crushed, they are shredded and separated into small pieces after being shipped to a recycling centre. They are then sorted into various metals. Recycling metal uses about 74 percent less energy than making new steel and is therefore is a much more environmentally friendly operation. Recycled steel is also cheaper due to new ore not needing to be mined to produce it. All steel products today has at least 25 percent recycled steel in it, and some products are made entirely from recycled steel.

The largest shredder in the world is so big it is measured in acres, not tons. A horse power of 8,000 is used to drive the massive rotor which spins hammers at 175 mph. This speed crushes six cars per minute into fist-sized metal chunks. The hammers must be replaced or turned almost daily due to the wear and tear they receive.

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