Abstract
Gold, silver, lead, zinc and copper are valuable nonferrous metals that paved the way for modern civilisation. This chapter analyses the life cycle environmental impacts from the beneficiation process of gold–silver–lead–zinc–copper-combined production. The analysis results from the International Reference Life Cycle Data System method indicate that there is a noteworthy impact on ionising radiation caused by the beneficiation process. Out of the five metals considered, gold and silver beneficiation impacts the most, while lead and zinc beneficiation impacts the least. Other major impact categories are ionising radiation, terrestrial eutrophication, photochemical ozone formation, human toxicity and acidification.
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