Distinguished Lectureship in Materials and Society

The Resource Trichotomy

J A M E S B O Y D

T h e r e a r e t h r e e b a s i c m a t e r i a l r e s o u r c e s : M a t e r i a l s , E n e r g y , a n d t h e E n v i r o n m e n t . O n e

c a n n o l o n g e r b e s t u d i e d i n t e l l i g e n t l y w i t h o u t c o n s i d e r i n g t h e o t h e r t w o . O t h e r t h a n h u m a n

a n d s p i r i t u a l r e s o u r c e s , w h i c h a r e e q u a l l y i n v o l v e d , a l l r e s o u r c e c o n s i d e r a t i o n s c a n b e i n c l u d e d i n t h e s e t h r e e c a t e g o r i e s . T h e c l e a v a g e t h a t h a s d e v e l o p e d a m o n g t h o s e m o s t

d e e p l y i n v o l v e d in t h e t h r e e r e s o u r c e a r e a s i s a f r e q u e n t l y b i t t e r t r i c h o t o m y . E a c h o f t h e

t h r e e i n v o l v e s v a s t a r e a s o f i g n o r a n c e a s w e l l a s t r e m e n d o u s v i s t a s o f k n o w l e d g e . I n t e r -

c o m m u n i c a t i o n a m o n g t h e d i s c i p l i n e s i n t e r m s t h a t t h e l a y m a n c a n u n d e r s t a n d i s a s e s -

s e n t i a l a s t h e b a s i c s c i e n t i f i c w o r k i t s e l f . A n d i t w i l l n o t h a p p e n u n t i l t h e t r i c h o t o m y b e -

c o m e s w h a t i t u s e d t o b e - - a t r i n i t y o f i n t e r e s t r a t h e r t h a n a d e e p c l e a v a g e .

T H E d i s t i n c t i o n t h a t y o u h a v e c o n f e r r e d b y a s k i n g m e

t o d e l i v e r t h i s l e c t u r e i s d e e p l y a p p r e c i a t e d . T h a t y o u

h a v e a s k e d a g e o l o g i s t t o a c c e p t t h i s i m p o r t a n t a s s i g n - m e n t i s a t r i b u t e t o a g r o w i n g r e a l i z a t i o n o f a v e r y

r e a l , b u t o f t e n I g n o r e d i n t e r d e p e n d e n c e o f t h e v a r i o u s s e g m e n t s o f t h e m a t e r i a l s s y s t e m . A s e n g i n e e r i n g s c i e n t i s t s , we h a v e p a s s e d t h e m e r e t e c h n o l o g i c a l s t a g e in t h a t w e h a v e m a t u r e d in o u r t h i n k i n g ; we h a v e b e g u n to r e c o g n i z e t h a t t o d a y o u r t a l e n t s a n d s e r v i c e s c a n n o t b e c o n f i n e d to o u r p r o f e s s i o n s a l o n e .

JAMES BOYD was Executive Director of the National Commission on Ma- terials Policy which just submitted its report to the President and the Congress. Before that he was President of Copper Range Company, one of the largest American copper producers, and has achieved notable success as a corporate execu- tive, educator, government official, and geologist. Dr. Boyd joined Copper Range as President and Director in 1960.

Prior to joining Copper Range, Dr. Boyd served nineyears with Kennecott Copper Company as Vice President of Exploration. In this position he organized and directed Kennecott's worldwide exploration program.

Before that, Dr. Boyd was Director of the Bureau of Mines from 1947 to 1951. He also served during World War II as head of the Army and Navy Munitions Board's Metal Branch, where he helped mobilize the mining industry for the war efforrt. He also aided in Germany's industrial recovery following the war, as Director of the Industrial Division of the military government.

Dr. Boyd's career as an educator began in 1929, when, for several years, he was on the faculty of the Colorado School of Mines, one of the nation's leading mining institutions. Following World War 11, he returned to the Colorado School of Mines

In p r e p a r a t i o n f o r t h i s l e c t u r e , I r e a d a n d r e r e a d

m u c h of t h e a p p r o p r i a t e l i t e r a t u r e w h i c h w i l l b e l i s t e d

i n a b r i e f b i b l i o g r a p h y w h e n t h i s p a p e r i s e v e n t u a l l y p u b l i s h e d . T h i s w a s a r e v e a l i n g a n d a n h u m b l i n g e x - p e r i e n c e . I d i s c o v e r e d t h a t m o s t o f t h e i d e a s a n d c o n - c e p t s t h a t I w i l l b e p r e s e n t i n g t o y o u , a n d h a d t h o u g h t m i g h t b e o r i g i n a l , h a v e i n o n e w a y o r a n o t h e r b e e n

a r t i c u l a t e d b y o t h e r s . B e c a u s e s o m e f r o m t h i s a u d i e n c e h a v e c o n t r i b u t e d t o t h i s l i t e r a t u r e , I s u s p e c t t h a t m u c h t h a t I w i l l s a y m a y s t r i k e a f a m i l i a r n o t e .

as Dean of Faculty_ Son of a mining engineer, James Boyd was born in Kanowna, Western Australia.

He was first educated in England and then came to the United States and was graduated from the California Institute of Technology. He earned his Master of Science and Doctor of Science degrees from the Colorado School of Mines.

Dr. Boyd was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1967. He served as Chairman of the National Science Foundation's Advisory Committee on Mineral Research from 1953 to 1956. In 1963, he was awarded the Rand Medal by the American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical and Petroleum Engineers (AIME) "for his distinguished service and devotion to the nation and the mineral industry," Dr. Boyd was the 1969 President of the American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical and Petroleum Engineers. Dr. Boyd is a past President of the Mining and Metallurgical Society of America, and of the Copper Club. In 1966, he re- ceived the Cal Tech Alumni Distinguished Service Award-one of 23 such awards ever given by the University, and in February 1967, he received the Jackling Award of the Society of Mining Engineers. He was a Director of the New Jersey Zinc Company, as well as the Detroit Edison Company and the Felmont Oil Company.

METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS VOLUME 5, JANUARY 1974-5

I would l ike to be l i eve that in the cou r se of a long p r o - f e s s i o n a l l i f e t ime , i t has been p o s s i b l e for me to s t i m - ula te the growth of a few new concepts that m a y in a s m a l l way con t r ibu te to ou r phi losophy governing in te l l igen t use of m a t e r i a l s and r e s o u r s e s . While r ecogn iz ing that th is i s a t a l l o r d e r , I hope that th is l e c t u r e wi l l s t i m u l a t e and r e e n f o r c e some thinking on your own along equa l ly impor t an t l i nes .

TRICHOTOMY--CLEAVAGE OR TRINITY

The choice of the t i t l e (The Resources Trichotomy) for th is p r e s e n t a t i o n was d e l i b e r a t e . The p r o b l e m s of ava i l ab le ene rgy , m a t e r i a l s , and those of env i ronmen t have been so e m p h a s i z e d , often by the uninformed, that many of us have deve loped men ta l b locks when a t t e m p t - ing to r a t i o n a l i z e the complex i t y of the r e l a t i o n s h i p s . The re has been a t endency to dea l with ene rgy , m a t e - r i a l s , and env i ronmen t s e p a r a t e l y , to subdiv ide and ana lyze each topic independent ly . Debate, t h e r e f o r e , has gene ra t ed a c l eavage be tween the t h r e e s e g m e n t s of the m a t e r i a l r e s o u r c e t r i c h o t o m y amongs t those ope ra t ing p r o f e s s i o n a l l y within th is b r o a d f ie ld of hu- man endeavor . Is i t not p o s s i b l e that th is m a y r e s u l t f r om the s a m e f o r c e s that have a d u l t e r a t e d the m e a n - ing of the word " t r i c h o t o m y " ? It f o r m e r l y r e f e r r e d to the unity of the human body, soul , and s p i r i t ; o r l ife, l i be r ty , and the p u r s u i t of happ ines s ; i t was a unif ied t r i n i t y although t r e a t e d in t h r e e p a r t s .

Today, we have the t endency to e m p h a s i z e the c l e a v - age o r sp l i t be tween oppos ing v iewpoin ts ; many a p p e a r to think o r be l i eve that such a c l eavage is m o r e i m p o r - tant a s an ac t iva t ing f o r c e than unif icat ion.

THE CURRENT CLEAVAGE

When d i s c u s s i n g o r a t t empt ing to ana lyze our r e - s o u r c e s in po l i t i ca l , educa t iona l , and even in s c i en t i f i c t e r m s , the c l e a v a g e s to which I have r e f e r r e d a r e eve r p r e s e n t . Throughout the F e d e r a l Government the t r e a t - ment of env i ronmen ta l p r o b l e m s has been s p l i n t e r e d and p l aced within an agency a s s i g n e d to env i ronmen ta l t a s k s i r r e s p e c t i v e of t h e i r d i v e r s i t y . T h e r e is no r e a l coord ina t ing m e c h a n i s m , even though v i r t u a l l y a l l hu- man modi f i ca t ion of the env i ronmen t is the r e s u l t of use o r m i s u s e of m a t e r i a l s , ene rgy , o r through igno- r a n c e of na tu ra l p r o c e s s e s . The f a i l u r e to r ecogn ize t hese fundamenta l r e l a t i o n s h i p s has not only a g g r a - va ted env i ronmen ta l p r o b l e m s , but has con t r ibu ted to e n e r g y s h o r t a g e s and made m o r e di f f icul t the ab i l i ty of i n d u s t r y to p rov ide the b a s i c r aw m a t e r i a l s r e q u i r e d for the funct ioning of a mode rn soc ie ty . We l ive in a t echno log ica l age that is da i ly becoming m o r e complex and demanding of both i ts r aw and f in i shed raw m a t e - r i a l s r e s o u r c e s . May I o b s e r v e as an a s ide : it is d i f - f icul t enough to mee t such demands without was t ing our ene rgy in ideo log ica l conf l ic t and d isuni ty .

The c u r r e n t app roach to publ ic po l i cy in the f ie ld of m a t e r i a l s r e s o u r c e s is c l e a r l y a c l eavage t r i cho tomy , if the use of such a p a r a d o x in mean ing is accep tab le . E m p h a s i s is concen t r a t ed d r a m a t i c a l l y upon a d v e r s e env i ronmen ta l a s p e c t s , and s e p a r a t e l y upon ene rgy s h o r t a g e s without any r e a l e f for t be ing made towards a solut ion of the p r o b l e m through coord ina t ion and app l i ca t ion of known technology. Concur ren t ly , the m a t e r i a l s c i e n c e s , without which we mus t f lounder in

our s e a r c h for in te l l igen t so lu t ions , r e m a i n bad ly ne - g l ec t ed and ignored as a p a r t of pub l i c po l i cy . The re has neve r been a t ime in human h i s t o r y when it has been m o r e urgent to unify these d i v e r s e p r o b l e m s .

DESIRED TRINITY

It is not my p u r p o s e to deba te the whys and w h e r e - f o r e s of th is r e l a t i onsh ip , but r a t h e r in using the "'Resource Trichotomy~' I wish to r e t u r n to the o r i g - inal mean ing of the word. This s u g g e s t s that the con- s i d e r a t i o n of m a t e r i a l s (and energy) doc t r i ne is in- s e p a r a b l e f rom the env i ronmen t f r o m which they come and mus t even tua l ly r e t u r n . We cannot e n t i r e l y s e p a - r a t e the m a t e r i a l s that we use f r o m the ene rgy con- sumed in t h e i r p r o c e s s i n g , nor can we ignore t h e i r p l a c e within the s y s t e m of human endeavor where they p e r f o r m a p r i m a r y function in ma in ta in ing our c i v i l i - za t ion as we know it.

MATERIAL SCIENTISTS IN THE TRICHOTOMY

Las t y e a r , Sir Alan C o t t r e l l , in his l ec tu re , 1o d i s - cu s sed the ro l e of m a t e r i a l s in the e n e r g y s t r u c t u r e , and the fu ture ro l e of m a t e r i a l s s c i e n t i s t s in the e x - panding technology of t o m o r r o w . T h e r e is l i t t l e to q u a r r e l about in th is g r e a t s c i e n t i s t ' s s c h o l a r l y s u m - mat ion . He made it c l e a r that the so lu t ion to the en - e r g y c r i s i s is l a r g e l y in the hands of the m a t e r i a l s s c i e n t i s t .

As a p a s t p r e s i d e n t of the A m e r i c a n Ins t i tu te of Mining Eng inee r s , I was p r i v i l e g e d to a s s o c i a t e with m e m b e r s of your two s o c i e t i e s and through th is to r e c o g n i z e v iv id ly the c l o s e r e l a t i o n s h i p be tween the s c i en t i f i c and the eng inee r ing a s p e c t s of m a t e r i a l s . It is the eng inee r ing a s p e c t s of m a t e r i a l s app l i ca t ion that b e c o m e s e s s e n t i a l to the t r i c h o t o m y . I mean th is in i ts fundamenta l s ense , not j u s t the app l i ca t i on of ex i s t ing m a t e r i a l s for s t r u c t u r e s and mach ines , but in the s ense of s t r u c t u r i n g the m a t e r i a l s t h e m s e l v e s to p rov ide those p r o p e r t i e s n e c e s s a r y to the exac t ing s t a n d a r d s of the day and w h e r e p o s s i b l e in a n t i c i p a - t ion of the fu ture . I am not c e r t a i n that we can af ford indef in i t e ly the luxury of b u i l t - i n o b s o l e s c e n c e that r e - su l t s f rom the use of c h e a p e r i n f e r i o r m a t e r i a l s .

Over the l a s t few y e a r s p r o g r e s s in the pu r i f i ca t i on of m e t a l s , and new methods fo r con t ro l of c r y s - t a l l i za t ion , have led to i m p r o v e d p r o p e r t i e s and qua l i t i e s only d r e a m e d of and often unsuspec t ed in the pas t . P r o g r e s s in s t e e l m e t a l l u r g y has s t e a d i l l y r e duc e d the amount of i ron r e q u i r e d to mee t the demands of m o d e r n s o c i e t y for a l l m a t e r i a l s . Such events and i m p r o v e m e n t s a r e r a r e l y v i s i b l e to the l ayman ; the publ ic s e ldom c o m p r e h e n d s a m a j o r advance in m e t a l l u r g i c a l s c i ence o r c h e m i c a l e n g i - nee r ing . Yet the cons t ruc t ion of our newer g r e a t b r i d g e s , o r that of such m o d e r n bu i ld ings a s the twin t ower s of the new Wor ld T r a d e Cen te r in New York, would not have been p o s s i b l e b e f o r e many r e v o l u t i o n - a r y a c h i e ve me n t s of i ron and s t e e l m e t a l l u r g i s t s we re app l ied to eng inee r ing des ign . The c r e a t i o n of b e t t e r s t e e l s , a s c i ence app l i ed t ow a rds a pos i t i ve end, is t r u l y m o l e c u l a r eng inee r ing ; i t is unfor tunate that the publ ic knows so l i t t l e of t he se g r e a t a c c o m p l i s h m e n t s

6-VOLUME 5, JANUARY 1974 METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS

and i s inc l ined to take for g ran t ed the s c i en t i f i c r e - s e a r c h and eng inee r ing t a l en t s that have l ed to such m a j o r i m p r o v e m e n t s . They a r e brought about by s t eady advances in m a t e r i a l s technology, r a r e l y by sudden " b r e a k t h r o u g h s " that would n o r m a l l y a t t r a c t publ ic a t ten t ion .

It i s d i f f icul t , t h e r e f o r e , for the l a y m a n to c o m p r e - hend the way by which these a c c o m p l i s h m e n t s r e s u l t in a s m a l l e r d r a i n upon our m a t e r i a l s r e s o u r c e s o r t h e i r c o n s e r v a t i o n . The iden t ica l a c c o m p l i s h m e n t s have t h e i r i m p a c t upon ene rgy technology and upon e n v i r o n m e n t a l p r o b l e m s . It is d i f f icul t a l so for the publ ic to c o m p r e h e n d that money spent for r e s e a r c h on i m - p r o v e d m a t e r i a l s p r o p e r t i e s can enhance the env i ron - ment . The r educ t ion in demand for v i r g i n raw m a t e r i - a l s , consequent to th is fo rm of r e s e a r c h in a dynamic and expanding soc ie ty , is unfor tunate ly inv i s ib le and hidden f rom a l l but a v e r y few, those who a r e s p e c i a l - i s t s in the exac t ing and often e s o t e r i c f i e lds of m a t e - r i a l s s c i e n c e . Consequent ly , to the publ ic a sav ings o r r educ t ion in env i ronmen ta l damage b e c o m e s con- j e c t u r a l ; the l a y m a n cannot r e l a t e i m p r o v e m e n t s in m a t e r i a l s t echnology to the env i ronment . Most people a r e not educa ted to the s ign i f i cance of s c i en t i f i c en - deavo r where the r e s u l t s of r e s e a r c h e f for t is not i m - m e d i a t e l y appa ren t .

Ne i the r the publ ic , nor the government , can in t h e m - s e l v e s e s t a b l i s h the m e c h a n i s m s to i n s u r e ava i l - ab i l i ty of new m a t e r i a l s to s a t i s fy the needs of an advanc ing soc i e ty . Yet, many of the g e n e r a l publ ic echoed by the po l i t i c i ans , wil l compla in b i t t e r l y if the t a s k i s not a c c o m p l i s h e d . The m a t e r i a l s s c i e n t i s t mus t , t h e r e f o r e , be innovat ive and compe ten t to awaken the publ ic to the need for expanded r e s e a r c h in m e t a l - l u r g y and inves t iga t ions in c h e m i c a l and p h y s i c a l syn - t h e s i s . Who e l s e is ava i l ab l e to speak upon the sub- j e c t ?

P r o b a b l y my own p reoccupa t i on with po l i cy deve lop - ment dur ing the l a s t two y e a r s wi l l tend to make such i s s u e s dominant to my thinking and to my p r e s e n t a t i o n to you. But desp i t e th is , I r e cogn ize that th is audience i s m o r e i n t e r e s t e d in a c c o m p l i s h m e n t and the c o n t r i - but ion that each m e m b e r of th is group can make in a meaningful manne r to modern soc i e ty through his o r he r s e l e c t e d p r o f e s s i o n .

f o r m e d without the spec i f i c p r o p e r t i e s inhe ren t in s e - l ec t ed m a t e r i a l s of known qual i ty . Few of our c i t i zens know what kind of m a t e r i a l s b e s t s e r v e s h im. Society, t h e r e f o r e , unknowingly depends e n t i r e l y upon a l imi t ed number of s c i e n t i s t s and e n g i n e e r s who, although r a r e l y seen and usua l ly unknown, s e l e c t the c o r r e c t m a t e r i a l s with the r e q u i r e d p r o p e r t i e s to mee t s p e c i a l - ized app l i ca t ions . The l ayman b e c o m e s a w a r e of t r o u - b le or d i f f i cu l t i e s only when the wrong m a t e r i a l o r m a t e r i a l s a r e chosen with a r e su l t i ng equipment f a i l - u re : he is not l i ke ly to know or to c a r e why such a d e - f i c iency has r e s u l t e d . The only out le t for his d i s t r e s s o r anger b e c o m e s the m a n u f a c t u r e r . The quest ion is whe ther o r not the f a i l u r e was caused as a r e s u l t of poor workmansh ip , the wrong choice of m a t e r i a l s , or the unava i l ab i l i ty of su i tab le subs t a nc e s capable of p e r f o r m i n g the function as des igned at a r e a s o n a b l e p r i c e . Except for workmansh ip , a l l o ther c a u s e s of f a i l u re a r e the r e s p o n s i b i l i t y of men engaged in the m a t e r i a l s p r o f e s s i o n s .

ARE RESOURCES AVAILABLE ?

Resource availability is a subject of almost constant debate, and frequently the arguments are based upon unsound premises, particularly in highly intellectual circles where the technological aspects of such ques- tions result from ignorance or a lack of desire to come to grips with the difficult decisions that are basic to resource availability. The public is repeatedly told that the world's resources have been dangerously de- pleted. We have been told that this is happening so rapidly that within the relatively near future the world economic systems will collapse under the weight of diminishing resources and polluted environments.

Certainly if mankind continues to reproduce, produce, waste, and discard at the rate of increase taking place today, the result is mathematically inevitable. The important single question is: do the physical resources actually exist to meet and satisfy these rapidly expand- Ing world needs ? I will answer this in the affirmative, and with no reservations. When I do this I run the risk of being characterized as an anti-Malthuslan or Polly- anna and am therefore suspect. Accordingly, let me support this thesis by examples that are known to all of us.

MATERIALS' PROPERTIES PERFORM FUNCTIONS

As the F e d e r a t i o n of M a t e r i a l s Sc iences made c l e a r in i t s r e p o r t to the Nat ional C o m m i s s i o n on M a t e r i a l s Po l i cy (3.b.13R) " . . . i t i s not the ind iv idua l m a t e r i a l s , in t h e m s e l v e s , that a r e of p r i m a r y concern . Rather it is the funct ions they p e r f o r m . " In o the r words , we use m a t e r i a l s for the p r o p e r t i e s they p rov ide in o r d e r to p e r f o r m s o c i e t y ' s needed funct ions . This concept may be supp lemen ted : where c u r r e n t l y t h e r e a r e now no known m a t e r i a l s that can p e r f o r m a needed function, the m a t e r i a l s s c i e n t i s t , and the v a r i o u s i n d u s t r i e s that they s e r v e , ex i s t to c r e a t e them. Cur r en t l y , we a r e unable to a c c o m p l i s h our ob j ec t i ve s in many f ie lds such as space technology, a tomic power genera t ion , oceanography , and t r a n s p o r t a t i o n l a r g e l y b e c a u s e we l ack the i m p r o v e d m a t e r i a l s n e c e s s a r y to a cco mpl i sh our ob j ec t i ve s .

The re a r e coun t l e s s funct ions which cannot be p e r -

PATTERNS OF RESOURCE USE

We must ask ourselves whether our destiny is eter- nally bound to the present mix of material commodi- ties; aluminum to zirconium, sawn lumber through fiberglas, or steel through cement. I suspect that as a prophet one would be bold indeed to predict new pat- terns of material use when contemplating the variety of subs t ances c u r r e n t l y in use by mankind, but I a l so su spe c t that i t would be s tupid to p r e d i c t that changes wil l not take p l ace and m a t e r i a l s t echnology wil l not evolve into new and unexpected p a t t e r n s . Within h i s - t o r i c t i m e s , with the p o s s i b l e except ion of the s o - ca l l ed Dark Ages , t echnology has never been s ta t i c . Fo r example , who might have p r e d i c t e d a few decades ago the advance to compute r technology through d e v e l - opment of the s emiconduc to r or t r a n s i s t o r ? Here is an e xa mple of old m a t e r i a l s modi f i ed by r e s e a r c h and put to new uses , a s t a r t l i n g and r e v o l u t i o n a r y deve lop -

METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS VOLUME 5, JANUARY 1974-7

ment that has made possible new horizons in science and technology.

SATISFYING A FUNCTION

Today, we live in an electrical world that has evolved only within the last hundred years. We could take ad- vantage of this new technology only to the extent that we could develop conductive materials to contain and channel electrical energy for man's use. The best naturally available material to conduct electricity is silver, a metal not widely available in the earth's crust, often difficult to find, and costly to produce.

The electrical industry did not fail to develop because of this scarcity even though in the early days of elec- trical experimentation silver was thought to be indis- pensable. The industry turned to copper which was almost as good a conductor, is and has been more readily available, and is far cheaper to produce in the quantities needed for a vast and expanding technology. Again, the exponential growth of both the production and consumption of electricity outstripped the capacity of the copper industry to meet the total demand. In the meantime, metallurgists had discovered how to pro- duce, treat, and alloy aluminum to satisfy the electri- cal conductive function to take up the slack, thereby permitting the electrical industry to accomplish its miracles of providing society with a means for raising itself above the economic level of mere subsistence. Aluminum is available in the earth's crust in such enormous quantities and in usuable deposits of such size, that an almost limitless supply is assured for an indefinite period in the future. Although the earth provides resources of silver, copper, and other metals that to one degree or other conduct electricity, because aluminum sources are so extensive that the electrical industry will never fail in the foreseeable future be- cause of shortages of conductive materials. These re- sults were achieved for society by the materials sci- entists, and we can cite enough by way of similar ex- amples to keep us here all night. At this point, I will discuss another aspect of the materials problem with an example that involves metals in a different category of scarcity, at least to North America.

RESOURCE DISTRIBUTION

The concentration of minera l r e sou rce s in econom- ical ly viable deposi ts is geological ly accidental and therefore geographical ly e r r a t i c (1.p2.25). There are current ly some ma te r i a l s , such as chromium and tungsten, with spec ia l ized p roper t i e s where subs t i - tutes or rep lacement ma te r i a l s a re apparent ly lack- ing. The o res of these important meta ls have been concentrated on the ea r th ' s c rus t only in isolated and widely sca t t e red local i t ies . There are few economic deposi ts that a re known on the North American conti- nent. There are , however, enormous deposi ts of chro- mium ores of unknown magnitude in par t s of Africa and in Russia and Turkey. There are also extensive deposi ts of tungsten in Korea and mainland China. North American industry has, therefore , to depend upon impor ts , unless we can discover through r e s e a r c h synthetic ma te r i a l s with p roper t i e s equivalent to those of the meta ls we must import . We must assume, of course, that no great deposit of tungsten or chromium

is d iscovered in North A m e r i c a - - a poss ib i l i ty even though apparent ly a remote one. To date, we have only d iscovered re la t ive ly smal l pockets of tungsten and chrome ores , deposi ts defini tely too smal l to sa t i s fy the domest ic requi rement .

For l a rge ly economic reasons , our North American indust r ies have always depended upon foreign sources for a growing number of m a t e r i a l s with spec ia l prop- e r t i e s and cha rac t e r i s t i c s . If the world were ready for the des i rab le object ive of total interdependence, there would be no concern for shor tages of ma te r i a l s in these sca rce ca tegor ies . The uncertainty of sources for such imports makes it incumbent upon the m a t e r i - als sc ient i s t s to develop, s t ruc ture , and synthesize avai lable ma te r i a l s to provide adequate subst i tutes for the ma te r i a l s subject to uncer ta in avai labi l i ty . We have achieved success in developing a stain res i s t an t s teel that does not requi re chromium, and we have had some success with subst i tutes to rep lace tungsten for hard- ening p roper t i e s in s teel . Granted that the new mate- r i a l s in some instances might not pe r fo rm quite as well, in other cases some pe r fo rm even be t te r . The important point is that a given function or p roper ty can often be at tained by more than one mate r i a l or s tandard alloy. Again, it is somet imes poss ib le t o r e - place a metal with a ce ramic - - the sky is the l imi t to the ma te r i a l s expert .

NEW MATERIALS

Mater ia ls sc ient i s t s and engineers , when given sup- por t and adequate lead t ime, have usually been able to meet the challenge and provide the proper ma te r i a l s when needed. It must be r e m e m b e r e d , however, that to some extent even the technical ly advanced soc ie t ies and nations have lacked the imaginat ive foresight to provide ways of sat isfying many obvious physical r e - quirements through use of a lmos t superabundant ma- t e r i a l s such as s i l icon and magnesium. We have only begin to d iscuss r e s e a r c h pro jec t s designed to inves- t igate energy sources from other than foss i l fuels. We a re grappling with problems of improved nuclear technology but only beginning to d i scuss those of pos - sible harness ing of so la r energy. We a re inclined to d i smis s such ideas as " f a r out" or as imprac t i ca l - - yet we have sent men to the moon. Do we r ea l l y be - l ieve that the poss ib i l i t i e s for harness ing so la r energy are hopeless when we have a l ready spli t the atom ? Do we lack imaginative en te rp r i se ? I must leave the answer to you--I don't bel ieve that we do.

RESOURCE DEPLETION

Despite exist ing bel iefs that ways will and can be found to sa t i s fy our requ i rements through imaginative technology, there remain many who s t i l l preach r e - source depletion and eventual exhaustion. Much of the rhe tor ic in the preamble of laws that involve r e sou rce ma t t e r s as proposed to Congress , and debates upon in- sul ts to the environment, begin with the assumption, based upon ignorance, that the world is about to run out of ma te r i a l r e sou rces . Such advocacy hinders p r o g r e s s not only in ma te r i a l things but in the wor ld ' s abi l i ty to al leviate poverty and hopelessness . Short- ages are only too often caused by faulty methods of

8-VOLUME 5, JANUARY 1974 METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS

economic d i s t r ibu t ion , sho r t s i gh t ednes s , o r power p o l i t i c s .

The c r y that spacesh ip e a r t h i s f ini te , and t h e r e f o r e r e s o u r c e s a r e l imi ted , f a i l s to r ecogn ize m a n ' s needs in t e r m s of the e a r t h ' s po ten t i a l or m a g - ni tude. This may be brought into focus when it is r e - a l i z e d that l e s s than 0.3 pct of the s u r f a c e of the United Sta tes has been d i s t u r b e d by a l l of the oi l p roduct ion , coa l mining, m e t a l s mining, ex t r ac t i on of sand and g r a v e l , and so for th , throughout the h i s t o r y of the nat ion. Of th i s , a l r e a d y o n e - t h i r d (1.b.2-19) of the a c r e a g e has been r e t u r n e d to o ther , and s o m e t i m e s m o r e va luab l e u ses . The re is l e g i t i m a t e d i s t r e s s over the p e r m a n e n t damage that s t r i p min ing can do to c e r - ta in t ypes of land where a d v e r s e t e r r a i n condi t ions make r e s t o r a t i o n i m p r a c t i c a l . Fo r tuna t e ly , such min - ing, s e r i o u s though the loca l e f fec ts may be, c o v e r s only a f r a c t i o n of the to ta l land d i s t u rbed . Obviously, we should not p e r m i t mining in those f r a g i l e a r e a s where r e h a b i l i t a t i o n a f t e r mining is i m p o s s i b l e with p r e s e n t technology. This l eads to another obse rva t i on that e m p h a s i z e s once m o r e the t r i c h o t o m y under d i s - cuss ion .

EXPONENTIAL DEMAND

Because the demand for m a t e r i a l s has r i s e n f a s t e r than the growth of popula t ions and t h e r e f o r e it has grown exponen t i a l ly in the pas t , i t has been a s s u m e d by some that i t wi l l continue to do so. Fo r tuna te ly , the r a t e of g rowth in m a t e r i a l demands in the highly i n d u s t r i a l s o c i e t i e s , such as the United Sta tes , de - c l ines a s they m a t u r e . Soc ie t ies with growing s e r v i c e componen t s , need fewer m a t e r i a l s p e r cap i t a (1.p.2-15).

F u r t h e r m o r e , in the l a s t decade we have w i tne s sed the m o s t r e m a r k a b l e of changes in soc i a l d i r ec t i on ex - p e r i e n c e d throughout wor ld h i s to ry . Within th is p e r i o d of t i m e , na t ions have a l m o s t u n i v e r s a l l y r e c o g n i z e d the s e v e r i t y of the popula t ion exp los ion and have s t a r t e d to take s t e p s that a decade ago would have been unthink- ab le . Who would have d a r e d to d r e a m ten y e a r s ago that the wor ld would a l m o s t u n i v e r s a l l y des igna te 1974 as the " P o p u l a t i o n Y e a r " ? The t a s k of con t ro l l ing the w o r l d ' s popula t ions has only begun but r ecogn i t ion of the p r o b l e m by the United Nations s u g g e s t s that f rom now on d e m o g r a p h i c p r o j e c t i o n s wi l l b e c o m e only edu- ca ted e s t i m a t e s or g u e s s e s . A l r e a d y many of the m e m - b e r coun t r i e s have d ropped the i r b i r t h r a t e s to l eve l s app roach ing z e r o growth. This may wel l be the beg in - ning of a change in the s lope of the growth cu rves of populat ion which for c e n t u r i e s have been exponent ia l . T h e r e f o r e , f e a r of un l imi ted exponent ia l growth may be unfounded.

But th is s l igh t s ign of e n c o u r a g e m e n t is no comfor t to those engaged in the p r o f e s s i o n s e m b r a c i n g m a t e - r i a l s r e q u i r e m e n t s . Techno log ica l advances , na t ional ambi t ions , r i s i n g af f luence , changing s o u r c e s of en- e r g y , env i ronmen ta l p r o b l e m s and s t i l l i n c r e a s i n g pop- u la t lons l eave to t hese p r o f e s s i o n a l s an infini te v a r i e t y of cha l lenging p r o b l e m s .

INSTITUTIONS

After c a r e fu l and i m p a r t i a l s tudy, i t is not diff icul t to conclude that adequa te r a w m a t e r i a l r e s o u r c e s e x - i s t and a r e ava i l ab l e , e s p e c i a l l y if t echnology can m a i n -

ta in i t s impe tus and keep pace with human r e q u i r e m e n t s . No sens ib l e d i s c u s s i o n of th is sub jec t is p o s s i b l e until i t i s r e a l i z e d that r aw m a t e r i a l s r e s o u r c e s a r e not the r e a l p r o b l e m . E s s e n t i a l l y the m e r e ex i s t ence of a v a l - uable r e s o u r c e does not gua ran tee an ac t ive o r f l ou r - i sh ing economy, nor does it s t imu la t e r e s e a r c h in the use of the m a t e r i a l . T h e r e mus t be some ins t i tu t ion o r ph i losophy that s t i m u l a t e s m a t e r i a l s use, some needed function that the m a t e r i a l s may be able to p e r - f o r m . Vas t copper d e p o s i t s e x i s t e d in Nor the rn Michi - gan and in Z a m b i a but the a bo r ig ina l inhabi tants were a ppa re n t l y unable to envis ion a function for the me ta l o the r than for a few too ls of c rude na tu re . The wor ld does not have a sho r t age of r e s o u r c e s , i t has a s h o r t - age of imag ina t ion and a sho r t age of ins t i tu t ions able to put imag ina t ive thinking to work.

Ins t i tu t iona l f a i l u r e is the p r i m a r y r e a s o n for the c l eavage be tween those who would p r e s e r v e the env i - r o n m e n t a l s t a tus quo and those who a r e cha rged with mee t ing s o c i e t y ' s needs . The c los ing of th is c leavage is e s s e n t i a l to e nv i ronme n ta l i m p r o v e m e n t and the p r o - v iding of m a t e r i a l s to the i ndus t r i a l s y s t e m . It mus t be done if we a r e to hope for a b e t t e r l i fe and p rov ide for the fu ture .

MATERIALS AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Most i n d u s t r i a l damage to the env i ronment r e s u l t s f r o m winning of m a t e r i a l s o r the r e t u r n i n g of was te p roduc t s to it . It is n e c e s s a r y , t h e r e f o r e , to r e j e c t out of hand any idea that t h e r e can be, o r e v e r has been a p o s s i b i l i t y of mee t ing mank ind ' s r e q u i r e m e n t s without some d i s tu rb ing of his env i ronmen t o r the e c o - s y s t e m . F r o m the e a r l i e s t t ime that homo sapiens evolved, his n u m b e r s have i n c r e a s e d at a growing pace , and he has modi f i ed his env i ronmen t b e c a u s e he is and has been an i n t e g r a l p a r t of it . The ques t ion cannot be that of nonmodi f ica t ion ; it can only be how he mee t s h is needs while p r e s e r v i n g o r even improv ing h is s u r - roundings .

It t akes only one a i r p l a n e t r i p a c r o s s any p a r t of the globe to r e a l i z e that , except for some h i s t o r i c was te lands , mankind has modi f ied the m a j o r po r t ion of his l iv ing space . In t e r m s of his to ta l needs , he has often i m p r o v e d o r enhanced the e s s e n t i a l va lue of the land and t h e r e have been t i m e s when he has s t r u c k an a e s - the t i c ba l ance . Did the s m a l l hole lef t in an i so l a t ed hi l l in Colorado to p rov ide the m a r b l e for the Lincoln M e m o r i a l add o r d e t r a c t f r om our na t ional e n v i r o n - ment ?

When men r ecogn ize the impac t of t h e i r endeavor and ac t a cco rd ing ly , mos t of our e n v i r o n m e n t a l d i f f i - cu l t i e s can be avoided or o v e r c o m e . In many p a r t s of the wor ld , men did not a p p r e c i a t e the consequences of uncon t ro l l ed a g r i c u l t u r e and within h i s t o r i c t i m e s made s e r i o u s m i s t a k e s , the consequences of which a r e with us today.

Those of you who may have r ead Our Plundered Planet, ~1 the famous study of the la te F a i r f i e l d O sbo rn , wi l l r e c a l l how much of the M e d i t e r - r a n e a n b a s i n was d e s t r o y e d e n v i r o n m e n t a l l y by o v e r - g raz ing , how the topso i l was was ted , g r a s s and t r e e s e l i m i n a t e d by v a s t f locks of sheep and o the r an ima l s , and how much of Spain, mos t of North Af r i ca and the Near Eas t b e c a m e often b a r e s u b s i s t e n c e r e g i o n s l a c k - ing wa te r , f o rage , topso i l , and means for suppor t ing

METALLURGICAL TRANSACTIONS VOLUME 5, JANUARY 1974-9

the populat ion above a subs i s t ence level . Some of us can r e m e m b e r how not too long ago the Dust Bowl in- vaded our Great P la ins , another r e su l t of ove rg raz ing and heed less use. Many mis takes of this na tu re had l i t t le impact at the t ime that they were made, but to- day with the wor ld ' s p r e sen t expanded population, and its a t tendant crowding in vas t c i t ies and urban regions , it has become es sen t i a l that we pay more at tent ion to many env i ronmen ta l p rob lems that a genera t ion ago appeared to be academic . It has become e s sen t i a l that we pay more at tent ion to how we undertake our work and the qual i ty of our effort. This being the case, why does a cleavage exist ?

ACHIEVING TRINITY

It is apparent that there a re segments of society that continue to c a r r y out the i r r e spons ib i l i t i e s with- out knowledge of or ignor ing env i ronmen ta l damage while there a re others who demand that all such ac t iv - i t ies cease without inves t iga t ing f i r s t to de t e rmine whether or not there is actual damage of an i r r e p a r a b l e or even t e m p o r a r y na ture . It then becomes evident that there a re t radeoffs tn all human act iv i ty ; without being p r epa red to sac r i f i ce or compromise one r e su l t for another , only cleavage r e m a i n s .

To avoid such futile d i ss ipa t ion of our efforts , with- in the ma t e r i a l s sys t em tt becomes the duty of its p r a c t i t i o n e r s to know or to find out the effect of their ac t iv i t i es upon the env i ronmen t ; then to invest igate and adopt the means for c a r r y i n g out the i r opera t ions wlth a m i n i m u m of damage to the i r su r round ings . As it is e s sen t i a l ly the use or m i s u s e of m a t e r i a l s that has an impact upon the env i ronment , so it Is only the m a t e r i a l s s c i en t i s t s that can find the proper solut ions. All of the rhe to r t c in the world, and the extensive p a s - sage of puni t ive laws, cannot solve such p rob lems with- out providing a l t e rna t ives . Ins i s tence upon cessa t ion of opera t ions may a l lev ia te env i ronmen ta l insuIt but would inevi tably damage the qual i ty of life by prohibi t ing a l ivelihood to o thers .

C ONC LUS ION

In conclusion, the quali ty of mank ind ' s life is depen- dent on the enhancement of his env i ronmen t and the r e -

l ief of his physical bu rdens . Put t ing ene rgy to work through fabr ica ted m a t e r i a l s accompl i shes the la t te r . P rope r behavior in winning, using, and d i sca rd ing m a - t e r i a l s accompl i shes the f o r m e r .

Although r e s o u r c e s a re ava i lab le to meet these needs, it r e q u i r e s the combined efforts of m a t e r i a l sc ien t i s t s , governmenta l and f inanc ia l ins t i tu t ions to make them avai lable in the p roper fo rm and at acceptable costs . To accompl ish all of this , while s t i l l enhancing m a n ' s su r round ings , is a lso dependent on the ingenui ty of the m a t e r i a l s communi ty , guided by government in its ru le making capacity.

The p rob l ems involved in the development , produc- t ion, and use of energy and m a t e r i a l s a re c losely i n t e r - woven with each other and the pro tec t ion of the envi - ronmen t . No pol ic ies guiding these ac t iv i t ies can be success fu l unless all three a re t r ea ted in concordance. Mankind cannot afford a t r i cho tomy in the modern sense of cleavage. He mus t have it in i ts anc ient meaning of t r in i ty .

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The author is grateful for the indispensable aid of Mr. Julian W. Felss in editing this manuscript.

REFERENCES

1. Materials Needs and the Envir~)nment Today and Tomorrow. Final Report of the U.S. National Commission on Materials Policy, June 1973.

2. Man, Materials, and the Environment. National Academy of Sciences/National Academy of Engineering, Washington, D. C., March 1973.

3. Conservation in Materials Utilization. Report to National Commission on Materials Policy, Federation of Materials Societies, December 1972.

4. COSMA TReport. National Academy of Sciences. 5. Elements o f National Materials Policy. National Academy of Sciences/Nation-

al Academy of Engineering, August t972. 6. Materials Science Application and Coordination. National Academy of Sciences/

National Academy of Engineering, February 1973. 7. Towards a National Materials Policty. Basic Data and Issues, First Interim Re-

port, National Commission on MateriaIs Policy, April 1972. 8. Towards a National Materials Policy. World Perspective Interim Report,

Second Interim Report, National Commission on Materials Policy, January 1973.

9. Materials, Energy, and the Environment: The Need to Produce, Conserve and Protect. National Commission on Materials Policy, February 1973.

10. Alan CottrelhMaterials andEnergy, Met. Trans., 1973, vot. 4, p. 405. 11. Fairfield Osborn: Our Plundered Planet, Little and Brown Publishers, Boston,

Mass.

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