The Future of Mineral Reserves

• Demand for minerals:

  • increase population = increase demand
  • technology has developed and integrated into domestic life as well as countries infrastructure = increase demand
  • Per capita use of minerals has increased = increase demand
• As demand increases, there will be increased exploitation
• Increase demand = increase price and increase exploitation as there is more profit to be made. This causes a decrease in cut-off ore grade - lower purity ore mined

  This leads to turning more resources into reserves
• Turn resources into reserves:

  • areas where we don't currently exploit e.g. Antarctica (lots of minerals under the ice). It may be come profitable to spend more money exploiting the minerals there
  • Deep Sea Mining - dangerous and difficult due to high pressure, cold temperatures, no light. Already exploit oil via oil rigs. Polymetallic nodules are not currently exploited and contain lots of metals. Australia exploits methane hydrates to combust - releases lots of methane into the atmosphere
• Better exploratory technologies

  • New technologies are being developed to allow more effective identification of new deposits
• Better mechanised mining and improved refining techniques

  • New technologies being developed in terms of excavation technology and equipment
  • e.g. larger excavators can dig deeper into the ground
  • e.g. diamond encrusted blades that can cut through hard rock
  • This can happen because more money is being pumped into mineral exploitation
• Use of low grade ores

  • Lasky's Principle - as purity decreases abundance increases exponentially
• New technologies developed improves refining low-grade ore:

  • Electrolysis - use of electricity to separate minerals from a solution (leachates from water travelling through spoil heaps and pumped out from mines as drainage water collecting lots of low grade ore).
  • This reduces toxic leachate going into the environment.
  • Very energy intensive - combustion of fossil fuels
• New technologies developed improves refining low-grade ore:

  • Bioleaching - use bacteria to separate minerals from solution
  • slow but energy efficient
• New technologies developed improves refining low-grade ore:

  • Phytomining
  • plants are grown on minerals or areas with minerals in the soil e.g. spoil heaps that contain low grade ore (e.g. copper)
  • plants take up the copper into itself
  • burn the plant to ash that contains copper
  • extract copper compound from the ash
  • needs to be purified by electrolysis - not energy efficient
• Source substitution

  • swap mineral exploited for a cheaper sometimes better material
  • e.g. lead pipes -> copper pipes (rust) -> plastic pipes that last longer
  • e.g. copper wiring -> fibre optic cables
• Recycling materials

  • this may become cost effective in the future
  • e.g. paper, cardboard, water, wood, plastic, clothes, glass, batteries, food, aluminium cans
• Recycling:

  Cradle to cradle design - designing products thinking about how it will be used at the end of its life/in the future. What will happen to the materials? How will it be taken apart?

  Circular economies - an economic system that aims to minimise waste and make the most out of resources. Products minerals and resources are reused in a closed-loop system.

  Linear economy - take, make, dispose and waste

  5Rs: Reduce, reuse, recycle, repair, refurbish.