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40 - Materials availability and recycling

from Part 5 - Energy efficiency

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 June 2012

By
Randolph Kirchain  and
Elisa Alonso
Edited by
David S. Ginley  and
David Cahen
Elisa Alonso
Affiliation:
Materials Systems Laboratory, Engineering Systems Division, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
David S. Ginley
Affiliation:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Colorado
David Cahen
Affiliation:
Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel
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Summary

Focus

The financial future of firms that depend on materials can be permanently compromised if the availability of those materials is constrained. This chapter examines how limited materials availability can affect a firm; how a firm can know whether it is using materials that are at risk of becoming of limited availability; and what can be done to mitigate that risk. One mitigation strategy is to foster an effective recycling system. The chapter concludes by exploring the benefits of expanded recycling and some of the remaining challenges to making that happen.

Synopsis

Resource scarcity is a topic that has challenged scientists, engineers, and economists for centuries. Current interest in this topic stems from the central role of natural resources in our economy, the inherently finite supply of those resources, and the unprecedented rate of resource consumption.

Type
Chapter
Information
Fundamentals of Materials for Energy and Environmental Sustainability , pp. 549 - 564
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2011

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References

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  • Materials availability and recycling
    • By Randolph Kirchain, Elisa Alonso, Materials Systems Laboratory, Engineering Systems Division, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
  • Edited by David S. Ginley, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Colorado, David Cahen, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel
  • Book: Fundamentals of Materials for Energy and Environmental Sustainability
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511718786.046
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To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

  • Materials availability and recycling
    • By Randolph Kirchain, Elisa Alonso, Materials Systems Laboratory, Engineering Systems Division, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
  • Edited by David S. Ginley, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Colorado, David Cahen, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel
  • Book: Fundamentals of Materials for Energy and Environmental Sustainability
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511718786.046
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Materials availability and recycling
    • By Randolph Kirchain, Elisa Alonso, Materials Systems Laboratory, Engineering Systems Division, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
  • Edited by David S. Ginley, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Colorado, David Cahen, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel
  • Book: Fundamentals of Materials for Energy and Environmental Sustainability
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511718786.046
Available formats
×