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Is Gaia becoming Thanatia, a resource exhausted planet? For how
long can our high-tech society be sustained in the light of
declining mineral ore grades, heavy dependence on un-recycled
critical metals and accelerated material dispersion? These are all
root causes of future disruptions that need to be addressed
today.This book presents a cradle-to-cradle view of the Earth's
abiotic resources through a novel and rigorous approach based on
the Second Law of Thermodynamics: heat dissipates and materials
deteriorate and disperse. Quality is irreversibly lost. This allows
for the assessment of such depletion and can be used to estimate
the year where production of the main mineral commodities could
reach its zenith. By postulating Thanatia, one acquires a sense of
destiny and a concern for a unified global management of the
planet's abiotic resource endowment.The book covers the core
aspects of geology, geochemistry, mining, metallurgy, economics,
the environment, thermodynamics and thermochemistry. It is
supported by comprehensive databases related to mineral resources,
including detailed compositions of the Earth's layers,
thermochemical properties of over 300 substances, historical energy
and mineral resource inventories, energy consumption and
environmental impacts in the mining and metallurgical sector and
world recycling rates of commodities.
Earth has become a huge mine, with a greater quantity and variety
of fundamental mineral resources being extracted year after year.
Technology, from electric cars to everyday electrical equipment,
consume vast amounts of scarce raw materials. On a planet with
limited resources, are these minerals being properly assessed? Will
there be enough raw materials to meet the demand of a world
population on track to reach 10 billion people? What will be the
consequences of accelerated resource depredation? Will the planet
one day become 'Thanatia', a resource-exhausted Earth? This book
allows readers to understand the mineral heritage of the Earth,
considering the demand for raw materials in society, comparing it
with the availability of resources on Earth and the impact of
mining. The basics of physical geonomics are exlpained, allowing
readers to analyse the loss of mineral resources on the planet. The
impact of renewable energies and technologies, including electric
vehicles, are studied. The book concludes with possible solutions
to mineral depletion, from increasing recycling rates, ecodesign
measures or alternative sources of mineral resources. Providing
numerous tables and illustrations, 'The Material Limits of Energy
Transition: Thanatia' gives readers a thorough understanding of
mineral depletion. Exploring geology, geochemistry, mining,
metallurgy, the environment and thermodynamics, this is a truly
holistic book.
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