16. Energy and mineral resources

To produce, transport and use energy, we need objects and systems made from materials, many of which are derived from mineral resources, such as iron, aluminum, copper, etc., produced from ores . The production of these metals requires energy, and more and more of it, as the ores mined have increasingly low concentrations. In the past, the richest mines were mined, and now mines are being mined where the desired metal content is lower and lower. In the case of copper, for example, it took an average of around 55 t of ore to obtain one tonne of metal in the 1930s, whereas today it takes 125 t.

The...