{"id":2712,"date":"2014-06-12T08:31:34","date_gmt":"2014-06-12T12:31:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/?p=2712"},"modified":"2026-08-12T20:44:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T20:44:18","slug":"old-ships-find-new-life-as-scrap-metal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/old-ships-find-new-life-as-scrap-metal\/","title":{"rendered":"Old Ships Find New Life as Scrap Metal"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Old

Old Ships Find New Life as Scrap Metal <\/p><\/div>Scrap metal recycling isn’t just good for the environment, it’s good for business. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that 77 million metric tons of iron and steel scrap were purchased domestically in 2013. The Steel Recycling Institute<\/a> website states that scrap is the steel industry’s single largest source of raw material, with more than 80 million tons of steel recycled annually because it is economically advantageous to recycle old steel into new steel. (Scrap is so valuable, in fact, that theft has become a major issue, as reported in the prior blog posts, “The High Price of Scrap Metal: A Look at New Efforts to Combat Metal Theft<\/a>,” and “Is It Stolen? Theft is the New Wildcard in Scrap Metal Identification<\/a>.”) Environmentally speaking, manufacturing metal from scrap yields significant energy savings, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and conserves natural resources.<\/p>\n

An interesting source of scrap metal that has gained attention recently is decommissioned naval ships. The practice of breaking down old ships for scrap is sometimes known as “ship breaking.” According to an article on Recycling Today<\/a>, in May of this year the U.S. Navy awarded a contract to Esco Marine, a full service marine yard and recycling operation in Brownsville, Texas, to tow, dismantle and recycle the decommissioned aircraft carrier Saratoga. This follows a contract awarded last year to Star Metals of Brownsville for the former USS Forrestal. A third contract is expected to go to International Shipbreaking Ltd. of Brownsville for the former USS Constellation.<\/p>\n

There are an estimated 130 decommissioned ships in the U.S. Naval ships have an active life of about 25 to 30 years and are decommissioned when their upkeep and maintenance becomes financially unfeasible. If no one wants the vessel as a museum or similar purpose, the ship is sold for scrap. According to the The U.S. Navy’s Team Ships website, <\/a> all U.S. Navy vessels must be dismantled by U.S. companies who demonstrate “acceptable environmental and occupational safety management plans as well as the facilities, technical processes, and trained personnel necessary to properly dismantle and recycle a Navy ship.” The site adds that due to increasing scrap metal commodity prices over the past decade, the cost of dismantling the ships has been reduced to pennies.<\/p>\n

Ship recycling yields primarily ferrous metals such as steel, but also non-ferrous metals such as aluminum, copper, and brass, as well as a variety of usable parts. Most of the metal that is recovered is sent to Mexico, just a few miles away from Brownsville, where it is manufactured into automobile frames, engines, and parts which are shipped back to the U.S.<\/p>\n

While metal scrap recycling has obvious financial and environmental advantages, the introduction of scrap into the metal production line also poses issues when its exact chemical composition, including the existence of contaminants or hazardous elements, is unknown. When positive identification of the grade and composition of the scrap material is a problem, x-ray fluorescence <\/a>(XRF) technology is the solution.<\/p>\n

Handheld XRF brings immense value to scrap metal recyclers<\/a> because they can rapidly analyze the elemental and alloy composition of incoming scrap, positively identify metals and alloy grades at material transfer points, and guarantee the quality of their product to their customers. Additionally, smelters and foundry operators are able to quickly determine and fine-tune the composition of the feed material, giving them tremendous speed, safety, regulatory, and cost-saving advantages.<\/p>\n

As more decommissioned ships enter into the scrap marketplace, how do you think your business will be impacted? We welcome your comments.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

P.S.  Speaking of U.S. Naval ships … Happy Flag Day<\/a> – June 14.   People across the United States celebrate each year to honor the United States flag and to commemorate the flag’s adoption. On the same day, the United States Army celebrates its birthday.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Scrap metal recycling isn’t just good for the environment, it’s good for business. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that 77 million metric tons of iron and steel scrap were purchased domestically in 2013. The Steel Recycling Institute website states that scrap is the steel industry’s single largest source of raw material, with more than 80 million<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48,"featured_media":2750,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"division":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2712","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-scrap-metal-recycling","8":"entry"},"_selected_authors":[1321],"_selected_reviewers":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nOld Ships Find New Life as Scrap Metal - 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While aluminum is one of the most widely used and recycled metals, its physical similarities to other materials, combined with the complexity of aluminum alloys, make accurate identification difficult. This challenge has significant implications for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General\/Industry"","block_context":{"text":"General\/Industry","link":"https:\/\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/general-industry-metals\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Scrap metal pieces laying in a pile","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-133993685_scrapaluminum.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-133993685_scrapaluminum.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-133993685_scrapaluminum.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-133993685_scrapaluminum.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-133993685_scrapaluminum.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-133993685_scrapaluminum.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13404,"url":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/indonesia-investigates-caesium-137-contamination-in-shrimp-linked-to-scrap-metal-imports\/","url_meta":{"origin":2712,"position":1},"title":"Indonesia Investigates Caesium 137 Contamination in Shrimp Linked to Scrap Metal Imports","author":"Marlene Gasdia-Cochrane","date":"March 11, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Indonesia has no nuclear weapons or nuclear power plants, so how did Caesium 137, a radioactive isotope, enter Indonesia and contaminate a batch of shrimp, which ended up in the United States, possibly through scrap metal. The Issue: Radiation Contamination of a Food Supply Last Fall, it was reported by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Scrap Metal Recycling"","block_context":{"text":"Scrap Metal Recycling","link":"https:\/\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/scrap-metal-recycling\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Caesium, Cesium, on periodic table of the elements. Alkali metal named after Latin caesius, sky-blue. Symbol Cs, atomic number 55. Fission product caesium-137 is extracted from nuclear reactor waste.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/03\/iStock-1413396579_caesium.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/03\/iStock-1413396579_caesium.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/03\/iStock-1413396579_caesium.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/03\/iStock-1413396579_caesium.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/03\/iStock-1413396579_caesium.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/03\/iStock-1413396579_caesium.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13545,"url":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/how-to-maximize-productivity-in-lightweight-metal-scrap-sorting-at-recycling-facilities\/","url_meta":{"origin":2712,"position":2},"title":"How to Maximize Productivity in Lightweight Metal Scrap Sorting at Recycling Facilities","author":"Marlene Gasdia-Cochrane","date":"May 18, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Addressing the Challenge of Lightweight Alloy Identification Lightweight metal scrap sorting\u2014especially for aluminum and magnesium alloys\u2014presents a unique operational challenge. While these materials are essential to modern manufacturing and recycling streams, their similar compositions make them difficult to distinguish quickly and accurately. Traditional sorting methods often force a trade-off between\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General\/Industry"","block_context":{"text":"General\/Industry","link":"https:\/\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/general-industry-metals\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Compacted aluminum scraps","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-163265634_alumscrapblocks-scaled.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-163265634_alumscrapblocks-scaled.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-163265634_alumscrapblocks-scaled.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-163265634_alumscrapblocks-scaled.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-163265634_alumscrapblocks-scaled.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/iStock-163265634_alumscrapblocks-scaled.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13557,"url":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/how-to-improve-inspection-of-small-metal-parts\/","url_meta":{"origin":2712,"position":3},"title":"How to Improve Inspection of Small Metal Parts","author":"Marlene Gasdia-Cochrane","date":"May 26, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Article Summary Manufacturers, quality control teams, and field inspectors face a growing challenge when verifying the composition of small metal parts. Components such as fasteners, weld wire, tubing, bolts, and machined pieces are often difficult to analyze accurately. These parts are critical to operational safety and product integrity, yet their\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Manufacturing Quality Assurance"","block_context":{"text":"Manufacturing Quality Assurance","link":"https:\/\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/manufacturing-quality-assurance\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"small metal fasteners","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/05\/iStock-1087432242.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/05\/iStock-1087432242.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/05\/iStock-1087432242.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/05\/iStock-1087432242.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/05\/iStock-1087432242.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/05\/iStock-1087432242.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13857,"url":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/eight-reasons-jewelers-should-not-use-acid-to-test-jewelry\/","url_meta":{"origin":2712,"position":4},"title":"Eight Reasons Jewelers Should NOT Use Acid to Test Jewelry","author":"Marlene Gasdia-Cochrane","date":"October 16, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Introduction Traditional acid testing can provide a useful initial indication of precious metal purity, but authoritative sources recognize its limitations when more precise analysis is needed. The Convention on the Control and Marking of Articles of Precious Metals describes touch acid testing as providing a \u201cgood early indication of fineness\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Precious Metals"","block_context":{"text":"Precious Metals","link":"https:\/\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/precious-metals\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Jeweller's workshop","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/10\/iStock-1062676800_jewelryacid.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/10\/iStock-1062676800_jewelryacid.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/10\/iStock-1062676800_jewelryacid.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/10\/iStock-1062676800_jewelryacid.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/10\/iStock-1062676800_jewelryacid.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/10\/iStock-1062676800_jewelryacid.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":12889,"url":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/diwali-sparks-gold-buying-frenzy\/","url_meta":{"origin":2712,"position":5},"title":"Diwali Sparks Gold-Buying Frenzy","author":"Marlene Gasdia-Cochrane","date":"October 28, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Forty tons of gold, worth $11 billion, was purchased by India in the first two days of Diwali. About 8,000 miles away in New York City, there was a gold buying rush and a cash-for-gold frenzy. Buyers and sellers are banking on the hope that the gold in the pieces\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Precious Metals"","block_context":{"text":"Precious Metals","link":"https:\/\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/precious-metals\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Diwali Puja Thali With Flowers, Diya, And Gifts","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2025\/10\/iStock-2240362443-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2025\/10\/iStock-2240362443-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2025\/10\/iStock-2240362443-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2025\/10\/iStock-2240362443-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2025\/10\/iStock-2240362443-1.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2025\/10\/iStock-2240362443-1.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/admin.acceleratingscience.com\/metals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2014\/06\/178182452.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/48"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2712"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2712\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2750"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2712"},{"taxonomy":"division","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thermofisher.com\/blog\/metals\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/division?post=2712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}