Global Resources Global Resources Global Resources Global Resources Volume 1 Abrasives - Energy storage Editor Craig W. Allin Cornell College Salem Press Pasadena, California Hackensack, New Jersey Editor in Chief: Dawn P. Dawson Editorial Director: Christina J. Moose Manuscript Editor: Christopher Rager Acquisitions Editor: Mark Rehn Research Supervisor: Jeffry Jensen Photo Editor: Cynthia Breslin Beres Production Editor: Andrea E. Miller Page Design and Layout: James Hutson Additional Layout: Mary Overell and William Zimmerman Editorial Assistant: Brett Weisberg Cover photo: ©iStockphoto.com/Guillermo Perales Copyright © 1998, 2010, by Salem Press All rights in this book are reserved. No part of this work may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the copyright owner except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews or in the copying of images deemed to be freely licensed orinthepublicdomain.For information address thepublisher,SalemPress, at csr@salempress.com. ∞ The paper used in these volumes conforms to the American National Standard for Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, Z39.48-1992 (R1997). Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Encyclopedia of global resources / Craig W. Allin, editor. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-58765-644-6 (set : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-58765-645-3 (vol. 1 : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-58765- 646-0 (vol. 2 : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-58765-647-7 (vol. 3 : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-58765-648-4 (vol. 4 : alk. paper) 1. Natural resources. I. Allin, Craig W. HC85.E49 2010 333.703—dc22 2010001984 printed in the united states of america Publisher’s Note From North America to the World Salem’s critically acclaimed Natural Resources, which originally appeared in 1998 in three volumes, forms the foundation for this fully revised and expanded four-volume set, Encyclopedia of Global Resources. Hailed by the American Library Association in itsfirstedition as an Outstanding Reference Source of 1999, Encyclo- pedia of Global Resources now adds 143 new articles(6 of which replace superseded entries) to the original 438 entries. All of the original articles have been revised to extend their scope to our global economy in 2010. All of the original 135 charts, graphs, and tables have been updated or replaced, and 110 new charts, tables, graphs, sidebars have been added, for a total of 235 data-laden sidebars that are easily understood at a graphic, visual level. Dozens of appendixes illustrate the text, providing students with worldwide insights into where we derive our mineral, biological, and en- ergy resources; how they are processed; for what pur- poses they are used; and where they stand in our cur- rent economy. The coverage touches not only on the economic applications and benefits of natural resources but also on their processing, their management, the environ- mental impact of their extraction, and trends in their availability—all in easily understood language. The expanded contents include 40 overviews of top re- source nations and their significance in the global context. Specific minerals, organizations, historical events, and biographies are included as well as articles on energy and ecological resources. Appendixes pro- vide both alphabetical and periodic tables of the ele- ments, along with lists of Major U.S. Mineral Re- sources, Major U.S. Mineral Resources by State, Major Canadian Mineral Resource Production and Values, Major Worldwide Mineral Resources and Producers, Major Worldwide Resources by Country, a Time Line, a Glossary, a Bibliography, and a list of Web Sites. Content Definition The term “natural resources” has been in general use since the late nineteenth century, and for many de- cades discussions of natural resources have formedan important part of history, anthropology, and social studies curricula. In the most basic sense, natural resources have long been defined as naturally occur - ring raw materials and phenomena—timber, flowing water, and minerals such as iron and coal—that are economically useful to humans, particularly those materials important to major industries or to a na- tion’s security. By the late 1960’s, however, concerns about the world’s growing human population, the fi- nite nature of many “nonrenewable” resources, and the environmental and ecological ramifications of resource exploitation had taken hold. Viewed in a global context, resource issues rapidly became more complex. Today one is as likely to hear discussions of “global resources” as of natural resources, along with debates over issues such as “sustainable develop- ment,” “renewable vs. nonrenewable resources,”“eco- logical resources,” and “energy resources.” This sea change in the way we view our resources and their in- tegration into a global marketplace and worldwide environmental concerns has prompted this complete overhaul of the original edition, its expansion to four volumes, and its new title: Encyclopedia of Global Re- sources. Contents and Scope of Coverage Salem Press’s four-volume Encyclopedia of Global Re- sources provides a wide variety of perspectives on both traditional and more recent views of Earth’s resources. In this sense, Encyclopedia of Global Resources serves as a bridge connecting the domains of resource exploi- tation, environmentalism, ecology, geology, and biol- ogy, and it explains their interrelationships in terms that students and other nonspecialists can under- stand. The 575 alphabetically arranged articles in Encyclo- pedia of Global Resources are as broad as “Agricultural products” and as specific as “Svalbard Global Seed Vault.” They range in length from 500 words (about a page) to more than 3,000 words (6 pages) and cover topics as diverse as soil, fisheries, forests, aluminum, the Industrial Revolution, the U.S. Department of the Interior, the hydrologic cycle, glass, and placer min- eral deposits. Top resources—119 mineral-based, 41 biologically based, and 39 energy-related (such as oil and tar sands)—are covered, as well as 40 countries; 32 ecological resources; 50 environment, conserva- tion, and resource management; 41 geological pro- cesses and formations; 72 government and resources; 18 historical events and movements; 35 laws and con- ventions; 49 obtaining and using resources; 71 organi - zations, agencies, and programs; 37 people; 22 pollu - tion and waste disposal; 23 products from resources; v 19 scientific disciplines; and 31 social, economic, and political issues. In the traditional view of natural resources, the core of the set is a series of more than one hundred articles on specific mineral and other nonliving re- sources, from aluminum to zirconium; more than twenty overviews were added to the original list of these mineral resources, while the others were up- dated. These articles begin with immediately accessi- ble, informative subheads—“Where Found,” “Primary Uses,” “Technical [including chemical] Definition”— and continue with subsections that address “Descrip- tion, Distribution, and Forms,” “History,” “Obtaining [the Resource],” and “Uses of [the Resource].” There are also survey articles on such resource categories as abrasives, gems, radioactive isotopes, and silicates as well as on the geologic processes and formations that produce mineral resources. Reflecting the over- whelming importance of petroleum products to the world, a cluster of articles discuss the chemistry, distri- bution, and formation of oil and natural gas in addi- tion to oil exploration and drilling, the oil industry, oil shale and tar sands, and petrochemical products. Other energy resources, such as hydroenergy,nuclear energy, solar energy, and wind energy, are also covered in detail. Two other broad resource areas are discussed in a number of articles: plant and animal resources, and what we have called ecological resources, such as Earth’s atmosphere, biodiversity, forests, medicinal plants, oceans, water, and even resources deriving from extraterrestrial exploration of our solar system. Articles on theformer range from specific crops, such as corn, to overviews of animal breeding, agricultural products, and carbon. Articles onthe latter reflect the realization that, in an increasingly populated world, natural systems such as rain forests, grasslands, lakes, and wetlands—from their genetic diversity to the global biosphere itself—must be considered crucially important resources, subject to threat and in contin- ual need of being monitored and protected. Because the concept of “natural resources” de- scribes materials useful or necessary to people, this set includes entries on many aspects of the human di- mension of resourceexploitation,suchashowvarious resources are obtained and processed. Also discussed are the major secondary or intermediate materials that resources are used to produce; among these arti- cles are “Carbon fiber and carbon nanotubes,” “Ce - ment and concrete,” “Fiberglass,” “Gasoline and other petroleum fuels,” and “Semiconductors.” Economic, political, and societal ramifications of resource use are discussed in essays on energy economics and poli- tics, the early history of mineral resource use, re- source exploitation and health, and resource use in developing countries. A number of articles stress the environmental effects of human activities related to obtaining and using resources—air and water pollu- tion, mining wastes, deforestation, desertification— as well as phenomena that can be either natural or caused by humans, such as droughts, erosion, and fires. Other articles delineate the issues and choices surrounding resource management, recycling, con- servation, sustainable development, preservation, en- vironmentalism, and waste disposal. Another set of essays cover particularly significant pieces of legislation, international conventions, and activities of specific government agencies. Brief arti- cles highlight organizations, historical events, and personages important in the history of resource ex- ploitation, conservation, and environmental protec- tion. Finally, several overviews of important fields of study—from agronomy to geographic information systems to risk assessment—round out the set. Reference Features Each article in Encyclopedia of Global Resources is signed, and each has summary information at the beginning and cross-references to other articles in the set at the end. All articles are organized using internal sub- heads, consistent by type of article, and articles that are 1,000 words in length or longer concludewithbib- liographies. Of the 575 essays, 350 also contain sec- tions that direct users to authoritative Web sites. All illustrations have been updated or replaced and sig- nificantly expanded with 235 charts, tables, and graphs, as well as 200 photos. A useful reference feature at the beginning of each volume is a Complete List of Contents, and at the end of volume 4 are several appendixes: an Alphabetical Table of the Elements, the Periodic Table of the Ele- ments, lists of Major U.S. Mineral Resources, Major U.S. Mineral Resources by State, Major Canadian Mineral Resource Production and Values, Major Worldwide Mineral Resources and Producers, Major WorldwideResourcesby Country, aTime Line, a Glos- sary, a Bibliography, and a list of Web Sites. Finally, the set ends with a Category Index that groups similar essays, along with a comprehensive Subject Index. vi Global Resources Acknowledgments Salem Press wishes to acknowledge the editors of the original three-volume edition, Mark S. Coyne of the University of Kentucky and Craig W. Allin of Cornell College. For this expanded four-volume edition, Pro- fessor Allin was instrumental in defining the scope, coverage, and contents. We also thank the 199 schol - ars who contributed original essays, updated their previous work, and/or wrote new material for this edi- tion; a list of their names and affiliations appears on the following pages. vii Publisher’s Note Contributors McCrea Adams Independent Scholar Bland Addison Worcester Polytechnic Institute Richard Adler University of Michigan—Dearborn Steve K. Alexander University of Mary Hardin-Baylor Craig W. Allin Cornell College Emily Alward College of Southern Nevada S. Ashok Penn State University Anita Baker-Blocker Ann Arbor, Michigan Grace A. Banks Chestnut Hill College Joshua I. Barrett Charleston, West Virginia Melissa A. Barton Westminster, Colorado Harlan H. Bengtson Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville Alvin K. Benson Utah Valley University John L. Berkley SUNY, College at Fredonia Milton Berman University of Rochester David M. Best Northern Arizona University Cynthia A. Bily Adrian, Michigan Margaret F. Boorstein C. W. Post College of Long Island University Richard G. Botzler Humboldt State University Lakhdar Boukerrou Florida Atlantic University Judith J. Bradshaw-Rouse University of Wisconsin—Madison Howard Bromberg University of Michigan JoEllen Broome Georgia Southern University Kenneth H. Brown Northwestern Oklahoma State University Jeffrey C. Brunskill Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania Michael H. Burchett Limestone College Henry Campa III Michigan State University Gary A. Campbell Michigan Technological University Jennifer L. Campbell Lycoming College Byron D. Cannon University of Utah Roger V. Carlson Jet Propulsion Laboratory Robert E. Carver University of Georgia Dennis W. Cheek Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation Kerry L. Cheesman Capital University Judy Arlis Chesen Capital University Jill A. Cooper Boise, Idaho Robert G. Corbett Illinois State University Charles V. Cordaro Pasadena, California Mark S. Coyne University of Kentucky Alan K. Craig Florida Atlantic University James R. Craig Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University Richard A. Crooker Kutztown University Robert L. Cullers Kansas State University Alan C. Czarnetzki University of Northern Iowa Pat Dasch National Space Society Jennifer Davis Kettering, Ohio LeAnna DeAngelo Arizona State University René A. De Hon University of Louisiana at Monroe Joseph Dewey University of Pittsburgh—Johnstown Albert B. Dickas University of Wisconsin John R. Dickel University of Illinois ix . Global Resources Global Resources Global Resources Global Resources Volume 1 Abrasives - Energy storage Editor Craig W. Allin Cornell. National Standard for Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, Z39.48 -19 92 (R1997). Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Encyclopedia of global resources / Craig W. Allin,. Outstanding Reference Source of 19 99, Encyclo- pedia of Global Resources now adds 14 3 new articles(6 of which replace superseded entries) to the original 438 entries. All of the original articles