Lithium – White Gold For Electric Vehicles

Lithium plays a key role in the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles.

Because of this, lithium production across the world has been sent to new highs.

The above infographic charts more than 25 years of lithium production by country from 1995 to 2021, based on data from BP.

In the 1990s, the U.S. was the largest producer of lithium, accounting for over one third of global lithium production in 1995.

From then onwards to 2010, Chile took over as the biggest lithium producer with a production boom in the Salar de Atacama, one of the world’s richest lithium brine deposits.

Global lithium production surpassed 100,000 tonnes for the first time in 2021, quadrupling from 2010. What’s more, roughly 90% of it came from just three countries – Australia, Chile, and China.

Australia alone produces 52% of the world’s lithium – extracted from brines, Australian lithium comes from hard-rock mines for the mineral spodumene.

While lithium is best known for its role in rechargeable batteries, but it has other important uses. In 2010, ceramics and glass accounted for the largest share of lithium consumption at 31%. Lithium is also used to make lubricant greases for the transport, steel, and aviation industries.

As the world produces more batteries and EVs, the demand for lithium is projected to reach 1.5 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) by 2025 and over 3 million tonnes by 2030.

For context, the world produced 540,000 tonnes of LCE in 2021. Based on the above demand projections, production needs to triple by 2025 and increase nearly six-fold by 2030.

Although supply has been on an exponential growth trajectory, it can take anywhere from six to more than 15 years for new lithium projects to come online. As a result, the lithium market is projected to be in a deficit for the next few years.

Full article: https://elements.visualcapitalist.com/25-years-of-lithium-production-by-country/

Advertisement

How Do Snowflakes Form?

Came across this infographic just a little too late for use this year (probably).

If you look at snow up close, you will probably notice that it is made up of thousands of tiny flakes with beautifully complex designs.

Snowflakes are actually ice crystals. They form in our atmosphere, high in the clouds, and transform along their journey to Earth thanks to different factors and forces.

The designs of snowflakes are actually products of a crystallization process that is controlled by the atmosphere. Despite the many unique styles of snowflakes, they all crystallize in the exact same shape—a hexagon.

The Nakaya Diagram of Snowflakes

In the 1930s, Japanese physicist Ukichiro Nakaya created the first artificial snowflakes and studied their growth. The Snow Crystal Morphology Diagram, (above) is his handy chart that illustrates how snowflakes are formed.

Close to its 100-year anniversary, this detail of the Nakaya diagram still puzzles researchers today. Many continue to theorize and demonstrate how this phenomenon may be possible.

Full article:  https://www.visualcapitalist.com/how-snowflakes-are-formed/

Solar & Wind Energy Infographic

Wind and solar energy, taken together, are now the fourth largest source of global electricity behind coal, gas and hydro.

Here is a useful graphic to support teaching about renewable energy in the classroom:

Billion Dollar Weather & Climate Disasters in the USA

The U.S. has sustained 341 weather and climate disasters since 1980 where overall damages/costs reached or exceeded $1 billion.

The total cost of these 341 events exceeds $2.475 trillion.

All graphics and full article:

https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/billions/

World’s Most Peaceful Countries

What was your guess? Here is the full list (according to World Index).

Link to ‘World Index’ You Tube film:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOhDLnDJdfM&w=560&h=315

Gas From Field to Home

With energy resources very much in the news, and the fact that gas plays such a major part in our energy mix, this graphic might be of use in the classroom.

World’s Wealthiest Cities

Where are the world’s wealthiest cities? This graphic from ‘Visual Capitalist’ displays a breakdown of the number of millionaires found in different world cities:

North America has a strong showing with seven of the wealthiest cities, by number of millionaires. In particular, the United States claims five of the cities in the top 10, including the very top spot with New York City.

Asia is the region with the second most millionaires with six cities in the mix. China is home to three of these cities, including Hong Kong.

Europe comes in third with five cities, though only London makes into the top 10 portion of the ranking. Finally, Oceania has two cities on the list, both located in Australia.

Full article:  https://www.visualcapitalist.com/top-20-cities-ultra-wealthy/

The Vast World Oceans

How much of our planet is covered by oceans?

There are over 510 million square kilometres of area on the surface of Earth, but less than 30% of this is covered by land. The rest is water, in the form of vast oceans.

This visualization by http://visualcapitalist.com

Breakdown of Countries Share of Earth’s Surface

The largest countries by surface area are Russia (3.35%), Canada (1.96%), and China (1.88%). Together they occupy roughly 7.2% of Earth’s surface.

Search:

Country / Dependency	Total in km² (mi²)	Percentage of Earth’s Surface
Russia	17,098,246 (6,601,670)	3.352%
Antarctica	14,000,000 (5,400,000)	2.745%
Canada	9,984,670 (3,855,100)	1.958%
China	9,596,961 (3,705,407)	1.881%
United States	9,525,067 (3,677,649)	1.867%
Brazil	8,515,767 (3,287,956)	1.670%
Australia	7,692,024 (2,969,907)	1.508%
India	3,287,263 (1,269,219)	0.644%
Argentina	2,780,400 (1,073,500)	0.545%
Kazakhstan	2,724,900 (1,052,100)	0.534%

Antarctica, although not a country, covers the second largest amount of land overall at 2.75%. Meanwhile, the other nations that surpass the 1% mark for surface area include the United States (1.87%), Brazil (1.67%), and Australia (1.51%). The remaining 195 countries and regions below 1%, combined, account for the other half of Earth’s land surface.

The remaining 70% of Earth’s surface is water: 27% territorial waters and 43% international waters or areas beyond national jurisdiction.

Jakarta To Be Replaced As Indonesia’s Capital City

Located in eastern Borneo — the world’s third-largest island — Nusantara is set to replace sinking and polluted Jakarta as Indonesia’s political centre by late 2024

recent article from Al Jazeerah here:

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/11/9/hldwhyindonesia-is-abandoning-its-capital-jakarta-to-save-ithld

Plastic Waste Around The World

Some interesting visuals for the subject of plastic pollution and recycling. It is important to closely consider the information here – a it shows how some countries of the world have become dumping grounds for more developed countries that now export their ‘recycling’ to locations overseas

More than 350 million tonnes  of plastic waste is generated each year.

Only a fraction of plastic waste is recycled, and about one-fifth is dumped or littered without proper waste management practices. Most of it doesn’t decompose, polluting the environment for hundreds of years.

The above infographic visualizes the largest contributors of mismanaged plastic waste in 2019, based on data published in the Science Advances journal.

Asian countries account for the majority of global mismanaged plastic waste (MPW).

India and China are the only countries to account for over 10 million tonnes of MPW (partly be driven by their sheer population numbers) while the Philippines is the third-largest contributor and accounts for 37% of all MPW released into the ocean at over 350,000 tonnes per year.

The three continents of North America, Europe, and Oceania together account for just 5% of global mismanaged plastic waste. However, these figures do not reflect the amount of waste that is exported overseas.

In 2019, the Philippines famously shipped back 69 containers of dumped garbage back to Canada, joining other nations in rejecting waste from rich countries.

Full article: https://www.visualcapitalist.com/visualizing-mismanaged-plastic-waste-by-country/

A significant portion of the world’s plastic waste eventually ends up in our oceans.

Many pieces of ocean plastic waste have come together to create a vortex of plastic waste three times the size of France in the Pacific Ocean between California and Hawaii.

Where does all of this plastic come from? The graphic above shows the top 10 countries emitting plastic pollutants in the waters surrounding them.

Most of the plastic waste found in the oceans comes from the litter in parks, beaches, or along the storm drains lining our streets. These bits of plastic waste are carried into our drains, streams, and rivers by wind and rainwater runoff. The rivers then transport the plastic to the oceans.

Countries with a smaller geographical area, longer coastlines, high rainfall, and poor waste management systems are more likely to wash plastics into the sea.For example, China generates 10 times the plastic waste that Malaysia does. However, 9% of Malaysia’s total plastic waste is estimated to reach the ocean, in comparison to China’s 0.6%.

Rank	Country	Annual Ocean Plastic Waste (Metric tons)
#1	Philippines	356,371
#2	India	126,513
#3	Malaysia	73,098
#4	China	70,707
#5	Indonesia	56,333
#6	Myanmar	40,000
#7	Brazil	37,799
#8	Vietnam	28,221
#9	Bangladesh	24,640
#10	Thailand	22,806
	🌐 Rest of the World	176,012
	Total	1,012,500

The only non-Asian country to make it to this top 10 list, with 1,240 rivers including the Amazon, is Brazil.

Many high income countries generate high amounts of plastic waste, but export it to other countries. Meanwhile, many of the middle-income and low-income countries that both demand plastics and receive bulk exports have yet to develop the infrastructure needed to process it.

Full article: https://www.visualcapitalist.com/cp/visualized-ocean-plastic-waste-pollution-by-country/