Copper end use trends

Assuming the tail doesn’t begin until term 18, the head and body together only account for 3.25% of all search traffic! In fact, the top terms don’t account for much traffic: • Top 100 terms: 5.7% of the all search traffic • Top 500 terms: 8.9% of the all search traffic • Top 1,000 terms: 10.6% of the all search traffic • Top 10,000 terms: 18.5% of the all search traffic

Existing approaches to reducing environmental impacts along the metal production and consumption chain are focused largely at the plant scale for primary production, rather than considering the whole metal cycle. As such, many opportunities for systemic improvements are overlooked. This paper develops an approach to designing preferred futures for entire metal cycles that deliver reduced carbon footprints. Dynamic material flow models in Visual Basic® are used to provide life-cycle-impact-assessment indicators, which help identify key intervention points along the metal cycle. This analysis also identifies which actors or agents along the value chain are responsible for, or can influence, behaviour which affects environmental performance. With this information, it is possible to evaluate different scenarios for transition paths to achieve reduced impact. These scenarios consider combinations of new technology, increased metal recycling and demand management strategies. A case study for the copper cycle in the USA shows that to meet a CO2 reduction target of 60% by 2050, innovative technologies for primary processing of mined ore will play a limited role, due to their increasing impacts in the future associated with mining ever lower ore grades. To compensate for this whilst meeting demand projections, recycling of old scrap would be required to increase from 18% to 80%, requiring extensive collaboration between primary and secondary producers. An alternate scenario which focuses on demand reduction for copper by 1% per year, meets the CO2 target whilst only requiring an increase in the recycling rate from 18% to 36%. Together, these suggest that there is merit in examining the 'metal-in-use' stage of the metal value chain more closely in order to achieve targeted reductions in CO2. The approach also highlights the inherent trade-offs between different aspects of environmental performance which are required when pursuing CO2 reduction targets.

The City Council voted unanimously to ban algaecides that contain copper, a pollutant that has been blamed for making its way into the bay from the city’s lake drainage system.

Aim-listed Nautilus is part of a tier of exotic exploration companies that has been badly affected by falling metals prices and an increasing aversion to risk. The company is adapting deep-sea drilling equipment used by the oil and gas industry to prospect for gold, copper and zinc deposits more than a kilometre below the surface of South Pacific seas.

From parallel to serial Moving from parallel SCSI technology to serial attach SCSI (SAS) technology has changed cabling schemes dramatically. The older parallel SCSI ran either single-ended or differential at rates up to 320 Mbits/s over 16 lanes. The latest SAS differential cable assemblies need to handle up to 6 Gbits/s on a single differential pair. The newest MiniSAS connector documented in the SAS-2 specification is even smaller for greater density. The latest mini-SAS connectors are half the size of the original SCSI connectors and 70% of the size of SAS connectors. Both SAS and Mini SAS have four lanes, compared to the original SCSI parallel cables. But along with higher speed, greater density, and flexibility comes greater complexity for the cable assemblies. With smaller connectors, the raw cable manufacturers, cable assembler, and the system designer must pay closer attention to the signal integrity parameters of the entire cable assembly.

Jack Lifton, a consultant, author and public speaker with more than 45 years of experience in sourcing and recycling minor metals (including the rare earths), shares his views on the current balancing act between technologies production and available natural resources. Mr. Lifton identifies these dwindling resources and the mining companies in which to invest, as he warns of the devastating effect production cuts will have on our everyday lives in "the age of technology metals."

Although the fuel saving achieved by the pneumatic hybrid is not as large as that of an electric hybrid, it still amounts to 80 percent of the latter. In return, the price-performance ratio is distinctly better.

The new engine concept has aroused the interest of several major motor companies and automitive suppliers, who have obtained information on-site. Some of the ideas of the new concept have already been patented

Insulation may not be as sexy as solar panels or wind turbines, but it’s an important tool in reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.

The Australian Government is stepping up its commitment to the environment by installing ceiling insulation in 2.2 million homes— for free. The Government will also increase the rebates for solar water heating from AUD$1000 to AUD$1600.

That future is electric vehicles powered by high ERoEI renewable electricity.

ERoEI for wind ~ 20, efficiency factor = 0.95 Grid transmission losses = 0.9 Battery efficiency = 0.97 Motor efficiency = 0.92

look at the economics of building a 10-MW turbine.

company said it can get a bigger power punch but still keep the size and weight under control by using its high temperature superconductor wire, which it claims is lighter and more efficient than the copper wire traditionally used in wind turbines.

"We have to wake up from this sleep ... and begin the construction of Italian nuclear power plants,"

The two companies plan to build together at least four nuclear plants in Italy, with the first scheduled to enter service by 2020.

both companies have signed a Memorandum of Understanding regarding collaboration on electric vehicles based on a vehicle currently under development by MMC in Japan

With an extensive knowledge of electric vehicles, PSA Peugeot Citroen is the largest global manufacturer of electric vehicles to date, with more than 10,000 units sold

These technologies are expected to reduce total carbon emissions in Europe by up to 15% by 2020. ICT can not only improve monitoring and management of energy use in factories, offices and in public spaces but above all help make people more aware of how they use energy.

The ICT sector itself is responsible for 2% of carbon emissions in Europe: 1.75% resulting from the use of ICT products and services, and 0.25% from their production

Results from trials in a number of Member States show that using smart meters can lower energy consumption by up to 10%

have been able to prove the existence of a "spin battery," a battery that is "charged" by applying a large magnetic field to nano-magnets

In the future, the new battery could be developed to power cars

The new technology converts the magnetic energy directly into electrical energy, without a chemical reaction. The electrical current made in this process is called a spin polarized current and finds use in a new technology called "spintronics."