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An exergy and a thermoeconomic analysis of Colombian mineral resources

Abstract:

Natural non-renewable resources such as minerals are becoming increasingly depleted against a backdrop of intense industrialisation. Through the exergy analysis and thermoeconomic tools it is possible to assign a figure to the degree of depletion. This is because the exergy replacement cost represents the effort needed by Man to return minerals to their original conditions from the "commercially dead state," Thanatia. The authors undertake an evaluation of the ten most significantly produced minerals in Colombia, since 1990. Through the 2011 mineral balance this paper's results show that the highest losses are in the extraction and not in national consumption rates. Indeed the loss in mineral wealth, quantified in exergy terms for 2011 is 119.182 ktoe and has, since 1990, accumulated to 1,543.372 ktoe. Additionally, in converting these losses into economic terms, it becomes clear that the nation lost its mineral wealth of 2011 mainly through exports. Furthermore, it seems, on comparing the mining sector contribution to the Colombian GDP ($35 billion USD) with that of the exergy replacement cost of those resources ($51-57 billion USD), it is clear that Colombia would be wealthier when it manages better its extractions.