Minerals, Metals and Sustainability: Meeting Future Material Needs

Description

Minerals, Metals and Sustainability examines the exploitation of minerals and mineral products and the implications for sustainability of the consumption of finite mineral resources and the wastes associated with their production and use. It provides a multi-disciplinary approach that integrates the physical and earth sciences with the social sciences, ecology and economics. Increasingly, graduates in the minerals industry and related sectors will not only require a deep technical and scientific understanding of their fields (such as geology, mining, metallurgy), but will also need a knowledge of how their industry relates to and can contribute to the transition to sustainability. Minerals, Metals and Sustainability is an important reference for students of engineering and applied science and geology; practising engineers, geologists and scientists; students of economics, social sciences and related disciplines; professionals in government service in areas such as resources, environment and sustainability; and non-technical professionals working in the minerals industry or in sectors servicing the minerals industry. Content: 1 Introduction 2 Materials and the materials cycle Natural resources Materials, goods and services The material groups The materials cycle The recyclability of materials Quantifying the materials cycle 3 An introduction to Earth The crust The hydrosphere and biosphere Some implications of the basic laws of science The biogeochemical cycles 4 An introduction to sustainability The environmental context A brief history of the idea of sustainability The concepts of sustainable development and sustainability Sustainability frameworks A model of sustainability 5 Mineral resources Formation of the Earth The geological timescale Formation of the crust Minerals and rocks Mineral deposits Resources and reserves Extracting value from the crust 6 The minerals industry Mineral commodities How mineral commodities are traded The economic value of mineral commodities The mining project cycle The nature of the minerals industry The economic and social impact of mining The minerals industry and sustainable development 7 Producing ores and concentrates Extracting rock from the crust Beneficiating mined material Examples of mineral beneficiation flowsheets 8 Producing metals and manufactured mineral products Theoretical considerations Metals Cement and concrete Glass Other manufactured mineral products 9 Energy consumption in primary production Direct and indirect energy and gross energy requirement Embodied energy Embodied energy and global warming potential The effect of declining ore grade and liberation size on energy consumption The lower limits of energy consumption Energy sustainability indicators and reporting 10 The role of water in primary production Global water resources Water in the minerals industry The embodied water content of metals Water sustainability indicators and reporting 11 Wastes from primary production Wastes and their origin The types and quantities of direct wastes Solid wastes Liquid wastes Gaseous wastes The impact of wastes on humans and the environment The international regulation of wastes 12 Management of wastes from primary production Management of solid wastes Management of liquid wastes Gaseous wastes Waste, effluent and emission sustainability indicators 13 Secondary materials and recycling Options for end-of-life products Drivers of recycling, reuse and remanufacturing The benefits and limitations of recycling Recycling terminology Recovery, recycling and return rates for common materials The energy required for recycling The effect of recycling on resource life Recycling materials from simple products Recycling materials from complex products Design for the environment 14 The future availability of minerals and metals The determinants of long term supply Potential sources of minerals Crustal resources Resources in seawater Resources on the seabed Summary and conclusions 15 The future demand for minerals and metals The determinants of long term demand Projections of the demand for mineral commodities Materials and technological substitution Dematerialisation The IPAT equation Summary and conclusions 16 Towards zero waste The waste hierarchy Reducing and eliminating wastes Cleaner production Wastes as raw materials Waste reduction through process re-engineering Industrial ecology Making it happen 17 Towards sustainability Closing the materials cycle Market and policy based approaches to transitioning to sustainability Possible global 'futures' Summary and conclusions APPENDICES I A note on units and quantities II A review of some elementary science The nature of matter Conservation of matter Thermal energy and the laws of thermodynamics Electromagnetic radiation Heat transfer III United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, Stockholm Declaration, 16 June, 1972 IV The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, 16 June 1992 - The Rio Declaration V GRI Sustainability Indicators VI Processing routes used for the extraction of the common metals from their ores