Re:Is the World Really Running Out of Sand?
by esmIII on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @01:01PM
(#41711096)
Could not even be the cheapest, Just the refinement process was developed for this particular sand. A different sand might have different impurities and need different processes to handle.
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Re:Is the World Really Running Out of Sand?
by hinkley on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @02:06PM
(#41711958)
If the particular impurities of this source can be chelated out with safer or cheaper chemicals, maybe in fewer steps, then the cost goes down.
Of course jurisdictions with poor worker conditions can just use the less safe chemicals and externalize the human toll instead of using more complex safety procedures.
Re:Is the World Really Running Out of Sand?
by cyanydeez on Tuesday October 01, 2024 @01:24PM
(#41711427)
Almost all our modern tech has extremely long tails measured in decades.
It's basic economics to exploit one source for as long as possible before feasibility changes, but that's a hard argument to make for anyone, even the most experienced personnel because it's all so site specific.