Resources: Material and Energy Life Cycles

These vocabulary flashcards cover the definitions of resources, raw materials, the life cycle of engineering materials, and environmental assessment methodologies as presented in the lecture.

Resource

A stock/supply of material/energy that is naturally occurring and has not yet been extracted, harvested, mined, or drilled.

Raw Material

A resource that has been extracted from its natural state, usually by mining, drilling, or harvesting, but has not yet been processed.

SDGs

Sustainable Development Goals

• developed by the UN

• directly depend on natural resources for their achievement.

Australian Domestic Extraction (1970-2021)

The increase in resource extraction from $585,763,290\,\text{tonnes}$ in 1970 to $2,609,868,998\,\text{tonnes}$ in 2021, representing a $345.6\%$ increase.

Australian Per-Capita Extraction Rank

In 2021, Australia ranked 224 out of 237 countries with $100.7\,\text{tonnes}$ per capita, which was $766.0\%$ above the world average of $11.6\,\text{tonnes}$.

Mineral Resource

A concentration or occurrence of solid material of economic interest in or on the Earth’s crust

• in form/grade/quantity that there are reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction.

Critical Minerals

Elements and minerals considered vital for economic well-being,

• BUT the supplies could be disrupted by:

  • geological scarcity

  • geopolitical issues

  • trade policies

Energy Resources (Strict Interpretation)

Resources used for energy purposes, mainly for the production of gas and electricity used as fuels.

Bulk Materials

Also called intermediate or basic materials, these have been processed from raw materials but have not yet been manufactured into end products (e.g., metals, chemicals, paper, cement).

Engineering Materials

Starting materials in a form ready to be shaped or used in additive manufacturing, usually formulated with additives to improve manufacturing or enhance end product properties.

Ethylene ($C_2H_4$)

A monomer appearing as a gas at room temperature and pressure, used to produce polyethylene via processes like high-pressure bulk polymerisation.

Life Cycle Analysis (LCA)

A systematic evaluation of the environmental impacts of a product over its entire life cycle, consisting of 5 different steps.

Cradle-to-Gate Life Cycle Analysis

The systematic evaluation of environmental impacts associated with all processes from the acquisition of raw materials to the completion of the end product.

Cradle-to-Grave Life Cycle Analysis

An evaluation of the environmental impacts associated with a product starting from raw material acquisition through to its final disposal.