Smil Vaclav. Making the Modern World: Materials & Dematerialization

Wiley, 2014. — 865 p.— ISBN: 978-1-119-94253-5How much further should the affluent world push its material consumption? Does relative dematerialization lead to absolute decline in demand for materials? These and many other questions are discussed and answered in Making the Modern World: Materials and Dematerialization.
Over the course of time, the modern world has become dependent on unprecedented flows of materials. Now even the most efficient production processes and the highest practical rates of recycling may not be enough to result in dematerialization rates that would be high enough to negate the rising demand for materials generated by continuing population growth and rising standards of living. This book explores the costs of this dependence and the potential for substantial dematerialization of modern economies.
Making the Modern World: Materials and Dematerialization considers the principal materials used throughout history, from wood and stone, through to metals, alloys, plastics and silicon, describing their extraction and production as well as their dominant applications. The evolving productivities of material extraction, processing, synthesis, finishing and distribution, and the energy costs and environmental impact of rising material consumption are examined in detail. The book concludes with an outlook for the future, discussing the prospects for dematerialization and potential constrains on materials.
This interdisciplinary text provides useful perspectives for readers with backgrounds including resource economics, environmental studies, energy analysis, mineral geology, industrial organization, manufacturing and material science.Preface: Why and How
What Gets Included
How We Got Here
Materials Used by Organisms
Materials in Prehistory
Ancient and Medieval Materials
Materials in the Early Modern Era
Creating Modern Material Civilization
Materials in the Twentieth Century
What Matters Most
Biomaterials
Construction Materials
Metals
Plastics
Industrial Gases
Fertilizers
Materials in Electronics
How the Materials Flow
Material Flow Accounts
America's Material Flows
European Balances
Materials in China's Modernization
Energy Cost of Materials
Life-Cycle Assessments
Recycling
Are We Dematerializing?
Apparent Dematerializations
Relative Dematerializations: Specific Weight Reductions
Consequences of Dematerialization
Relative Dematerialization in Modern Economies
Declining Energy Intensities
Decarbonization and Desulfurization
Material Outlook
Natural Resources
Wasting Less
New Materials and Dematerialization
Chances of Fundamental Departures