Resources Flashcards
What is the purpose of a life cycle assessment?
To assess the environmental impact of production
Life Cycle Assessments
- extracting and processing raw materials
-manufacturing and packaging - use and operation during its lifetime
- disposal
each stage: distributed and transportation
Problems with LCA’s
- hard to quantify
- companies may alter LCA’s to support claims
Ways to reduce the use of resources
- reduce
- reuse
- recycle
Recycling benefits
- To reduce the use of limited resources
- reduce waste and environmental impacts
- reduce energy consumption
How to produce a new glass bottle when recycling
crush and melt to produce new glass products
Benefits of reusing, reducing and recycling
quarrying and mining is reduced
corrosion
The destruction/decaying of material caused by chemical reactions with substances in the environment
eg of corrosion
Iron reacts with cold air and water
Using barriers
- paint
- grease
- galvanising, sacrificial
- electroplating
Galvanising
- Using a more reactive metal to protect your material
- The more reactive metal will react. Sacrificial –> donate electrons,
The reactivity series
The ability for metals to lose electrons to form a positive ion
What do humans use the earth’s resources for?
To provide warmth, shelter, food and transport
Why do you use a metal in filters?
It kills microorganisms
Living natural resources
Plants and animals
Non-living natural resources
minerals, fossil fuels, water and air
What resources can be replaced by synthetic products?
Rubber and fertilisers
Rubber
- Rubber, which is extracted from the sap of trees (called latex) is an example of a natural product that can be replaced by a synthetic one.
- The replacement material for rubber are polymers which have been developed to specifically replace the rubber in many products.
Fertilisers
- in some areas, the appliance of scientific advancement has also allowed us to maximise the production of natural products
eg: use of fertilisers.
What can natural resources be classified as?
Either renewable or non-renewable
Renewable resources
Resources which can be replenished or replaced in a finite time in a human timescale.
What is an example of a renewable resource?
Timber, as trees and forests can be replanted after the wood has been harvested, although they do take years to replenish
What are finite or non-renewable resources?
They don’t reform quickly enough or don’t reform at all
eg: minerals from the Earth’s crust and metal ores
What can make the extraction process less sustainable?
Many resources require further processing to make the desired products after extraction- they require energy.
Examples of unsustainable extraction processes
- the reduction of metals from ores
- the fractional distillation of crude oil
What are the risks of the extraction of non-renewable resources?
The Earth’s natural resources are being depleted and large amounts of energy are being consumed in the process of extraction.
What can we do to reduce the need to further exploit finite mineral resources?
Recycle and re-use materials.
Non-renewable resources and finite resources are the
same
What is potable water?
It is water that has been processed and is safe for human consumption and daily use.
What is the difference between pure water and potable water?
Pure water is solely made up of H20 molecules whereas potable water usually contains dissolved minerals and salts.