Cans

The aluminum can or aluminium can is a popular beverage can made of aluminum, first introduced by the Coors Brewing Company. Previous cans had been made of steel. more...

Modern cans are generally produced through a mechanical process that involves punching a flat blank from very stiff cold-rolled sheet. This sheet is typically alloy 3104-H19, which is aluminum with about 1% manganese and 1% magnesium to give it strength and formability. The flat blank is first formed into a cup about three inches in diameter. This cup is then pushed through a different forming process called "ironing" which forms the can. The bottom of the can is also shaped at this time. The malleable metal deforms into the shape of an open-top can. With the sophisticated technology of the dies and the forming machines, the side of the can is significantly thinner than either the top and bottom areas, where stiffness is required. One can-making machine can turn out about 500 cans per minute.

Finally, the top rim of the can is trimmed and pressed inward to form a taper conical where the can lid will later be attached.

The lid contains a scored region and a pull tab that can be leveraged to open the hole (by pushing the scored region into the can). The lid for the can is usually an aluminum alloy with magnesium. The lids are stamped out from a flat sheet and formed in a single operation. The pull tab is made a similar alloy, and the tiny rivet connecting the two is a different, softer alloy. These are assembled before the lid is attached to the can.

Read more at Wikipedia.org