Why isn't aluminum cans attracted to a magnets?

Answer 1

The copper atom and the atoms in brass alloys are not magnetic. Ferromagnetic materials, such as traditional iron bar magnets, are magnetic because the electrons in them naturally tend to align parallely. Only atoms with unfilled electron shells can be ferromagnetic.

Copper, and brass, which is an alloy of copper and zinc, are diamagnetic. This means they are effected negligibly by common magnetic fields because they have no permanent magnetic moment and a magnetic susceptibility less than zero. With a strong enough magnetic field, however, copper and brass can be repelled from the source of the magnetic field.

Answer 2

Because aluminium is not a ferrous metal. Ferrous metals are ones that are attracted to magnets such as; steel, different alloys of steel, and pig iron. These metals are ferrous because they all have come from or contain iron. Non-ferrous metals are metals which do not contain any iron. They are not magnetic. These include aluminium, copper, lead. zinc and tin.

Answer 3

It is all about electron shells. Magnets will stick to other magnets and other metals such as iron, cobalt, nickel. The reason they stick together is because both have organized atoms. An ordinary ferromagnetic material the tiny magnets are scattered all over the place and their magnetic fields cancel each other out thus, no magnetism. The tiny magnets are actually atoms and aluminum does not.