Applying and advancing the economic resource scarcity potential (ESP) method for rare earth elements
Wall, F; Pell, R; Yan, X; et al.Bailey, G
Date: 25 October 2018
Article
Journal
Resources Policy
Publisher
Elsevier
Publisher DOI
Abstract
A number of studies have identified rare earth elements (REE) as critical metals due to their
high economic importance combined with a high risk of supply disruption (Du et al, 2011;
Nassar et al, 2015; Schneider et al, 2014). The current methods used to calculate resource
depletion in life cycle assessments (LCA) neglect ...
A number of studies have identified rare earth elements (REE) as critical metals due to their
high economic importance combined with a high risk of supply disruption (Du et al, 2011;
Nassar et al, 2015; Schneider et al, 2014). The current methods used to calculate resource
depletion in life cycle assessments (LCA) neglect socio-economic, regulatory and
geopolitical aspects, nor do they include functionalities such as material recycling or reuse
that control the supply of raw materials. These are important factors in determining criticality
and are the controlling factors on REE availability rather than geological availability. The
economic scarcity potential (ESP) method introduced by Schneider et al. (2014) provides a
framework to calculate criticality. This paper reviews the ESP method and advances the
method based on recent developments in material criticality. ESP criticality scores for 15
REE with the addition of Au, Cu, platinum-group metals (PGM), Fe and Li are measured.
The results highlight that Nd and Dy are the most critical REE, owing mainly to the high
demand growth forecast for these two elements. A pathway is presented for incorporating
these calculated scores into the ReCiPe life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) method of a
LCA.
Camborne School of Mines
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