1. Provide each group of students with several clean cans (ferrous and non-ferrous) and ask them if they notice any differences between the cans. Provide them with some basic science tools like magnifying glasses, scales, rulers, and magnets.
2. Challenge students to come up with some differences.
3. Have students share ideas and observations. Students may discover that some of the cans are magnetic, and some are not. Some are also heavier and have a thicker gauge (width) than others.
4. Have students sort out the cans according to whether they are magnetic or not. Explain that some are made from iron & steel (called ferrous metals) and some from aluminum (called non-ferrous metals). Do not reveal which is which just yet – have students think about this as they move on to the main activity.
5. Ask if there is a trend they notice in what types of products are found in which type of can.
6. Tell students that in this activity they will conduct a Web Quest to discover more about how cans are made, and in particular, those that are made from aluminum.

Non-ferrous metals like aluminum, copper, lead, nickel, tin, and zinc are especially valuable to recycle. They are among the few materials that do not degrade during the recycling process. Aluminum cans are used all over the country. More than $40 billion in non-ferrous metals are recycled each year. ISRI estimates that if all the aluminum scrap that we recycle were made into cans, they would stretch from Earth to Venus! Recycling saves enormous amounts of energy— the equivalent of 25 million barrels of gasoline a year. In this activity you will use the Internet to explore the multiple steps involved in producing a can from raw ore.

Materials:

• Device with internet access
• Student Activity Sheet (Printable PDF)
• Student Data Sheet (Printable PDF) or you can copy/paste the table in Part 2 into an electronic document
• Calculator

Safety Notes:

• When using technology, engage in safe, legal, and ethical behavior; this applies to devices (hardware), application or programs (software), and interactions with others.
• There are no anticipated physical safety risks associated with this Activity.

Part 1: Web Quest: Investigate Aluminum

Hand out activity pages.

1. Using the internet and other resources, find out where aluminum comes from. What is the name of the ore?
2. Where is this ore mined? Find at least four areas of the world and label these areas on the world map. Ask students to share ideas about where aluminum comes from – where it is mined and where it is refined.
3. Estimate the distance that the ore must be transported to reach your home state from each of the locations you have identified.
4. Find out if aluminum is magnetic or not!
5. Can you determine which of the cans you observed at the beginning of the lab was made from aluminum? What kinds of products are often stored in aluminum, and why?

Part 2: Web Quest: Create a Flowchart for the "Birth" of a Soda Can!

1. There are five major steps in the process of making a soda can. From mining to transportation, describe each step listed in the flowchart on the student data sheet, defining the process. Include information about any impacts to the environment or other interesting pieces of information you feel are worth noting.
2. It would be impossible to calculate all the costs (in money, energy and to the environment) to make that can. But we can estimate. As you research the steps involved in making a soda can, find out at least one fact that can help you estimate what it takes to make it happen. What’s involved? What does it cost?
3. In column 3, list your sources of information.

Table 1: Flowchart Table
Complete this table, describing each step listed in the flowchart. Include information about potential cost if possible, and any impacts to the environmental or other interesting pieces of information you feel are worth noting. Include your sources of information. 

Reflect and Apply:

• Aluminum is one of the easiest and most valuable products that consumers can recycle. While it’s easy to argue that recycling aluminum cans is important, people sometimes forget or get lazy! Different cities and states have different ways to motivate can recycling, ranging from education, incentives, limits on the volume of household waste and can deposits.
• Imagine that your community is going to establish a new program to recycle cans. At a large meeting, four options for the system are discussed. Look at the recycling incentives below. Choose what you think is the best option. On a separate piece of paper, develop an argument and support your choice with evidence. Which option would you choose not to support? Why?

Extension:

• Compare the thickness of various cans in the supermarket. Today’s aluminum can is somewhat thinner than those manufactured in the past. Conduct an investigation and find out why! Investigate the coatings used inside some cans that are used to store highly acidic foods. What do you notice and why do you think this is?
• Journal Question: Now that you have learned more about the costs and energy needed to produce a can from raw ore deposits, do you think that it is an effective way to package food? Why or why not? What other options are available? Why do you think that these options might be better or worse?

Additional Resources to Explore:

• Web Link - How Aluminum Works