The diploma thesis focuses on new possibilities to reduce raw materials costs in production of heat-resistant cordierite ceramics. Cordierite is very often used as furnace wagon lining and for production of blazing utilities for its high resistance against temperature changes. The thesis gives complete overview of cordierite material. It includes description of different production technologies for form-pieces preparation, raw materials for their production and their applications. The goal of performed laboratory measuring in an experimental part was to verify and prove a possibility of reducing raw-material costs in production of cordierite ceramics by using cheaper preferably secondary raw materials.

The thesis deals with the study and the characterization of bypass dusts from the cement plants. The aim of the thesis is to search for the possibilities of the usage of that secondary product by means of the cement production. The thesis focuses mainly on the determination of the amount of soluble substances in the dusts, the dependence of dissolution of the soluble share on water – dust ratio, the dependence of dissolution time on the yield of the soluble share and the influence of the temperature on the yield. The physical and chemical properties of the investigated samples taken from several cement plants in the Czech Republic and Slovakia were found out by using the following methods: by TG/DTA analysis, particles size by laser diffraction, phase composition of raw materials, treated raw materials and evaporation residues by X-ray diffraction. It was further investigated whether there was a link between finesse of the particles and the content of soluble substances (chlorides). This was accomplished by classification of the bypass dusts as fine and coarse fraction on the air cassifier with the target parameter X50 1 m. The aim of the classification was to find out whether some of the fractions carry majority share of some of components.

Dès le début des années 1980, les États francophones d’Afrique, producteurs de matières premières, ont largement ouvert leur secteur extractif aux investissements étrangers. Cette ouverture a adopté plusieurs stratégies parmi lesquelles la fiscalité et les douanes ont occupé une place de choix. Nos travaux ont porté principalement sur ces dernières. En effet, l’enjeu de ces États a toujours été la conciliation de l’attractivité du secteur et sa rentabilité. Dans un premier temps, notre réflexion a été centrée sur les stratégies de mise en place des dispositifs fiscaux et douaniers de faveur et, dans un deuxième temps, sur la bonne gouvernance de ces dispositifs. Il ressort de nos travaux qu’au primo, si les stratégies fiscales et douanières ont réussi à attirer des investissements étrangers, la question de leur rentabilité est encore mitigée, ce pour de nombreuses raisons que nous avons analysées. C’est à ce niveau que nous avons fait des propositions d’amélioration. Au secundo, il apparaît que les conditions de la bonne gouvernance des dispositifs fiscaux et douaniers mis en place ne sont pas suffisamment réunies par les États francophones d’Afrique, d’où la nécessité de réunir ces dernières tout en améliorant les techniques de prévention et résolution des litiges. / Since the early 1980s, French-speaking African countries, producers of raw materials, have largely opened their extractive sector to foreign investments. This openness has adopted several strategies among which taxation and customs have occupied a special place. Our work focused on the latter. Indeed, the stakes of these states have always been the reconciliation of the attractiveness of the sector and its profitability. Initially, our reflection focused on the strategies for setting up favorable tax and customs systems and, secondly, on the good governance of these systems. Our research shows that, first, while tax and customs strategies have been successful in attracting foreign investments, the question of profitability is still mixed, for many reasons that we have analyzed. This is where we made suggestions for improvement. In the second, it appears that the conditions of good governance tax and customs arrangements put in place are not sufficiently met by Francophone African, hence the need reunite past and improve prevention and resolution techniques disputes.

Die vorliegende Ausgabe beschäftigt sich mit dem Thema „Ökonomische Analyse der Rückgewinnung von hochwertigen Metallen aus elektrischen und elektronischen Altgeräten in Deutschland“. Elektro- und Elektronikgeräte sind aus dem täglichen Leben nicht mehr wegzudenken; die Unternehmen entwickeln und produzieren immer leistungsfähigere Produkte, wobei durch die immer schnelleren und kurzlebigeren Innovationszyklen die Abfallberge ausgedienter Elektro(nik)geräte beständig wachsen. Mit Inkrafttreten des Elektro- und Elektronikgerätegesetz am 24. März 2005 werden alte Elektro(nik)geräte zukünftig getrennt gesammelt und weitgehend verwertet. Neu ist, dass die Hersteller mehr Verantwortung für ihre Produkte übernehmen und zur Verwertung der getrennt gesammelten Elektro- und Elektronik-Altgeräten verpflichtet sind. Das Elektro- und Elektronikgerätegesetz geht zum einen aus der europäischen Richtlinie über die Entsorgung von Elektro- und Elektronik-Altgeräten (WEEE) und zum anderen aus der europäischen Richtlinie über die Verwendung bestimmter gefährlicher Stoffe in Elektro- und Elektronikgeräten (RoHS) hervor und gilt als Reaktion auf die wachsenden Elektro(nik)schrott-Berge. Für die Unternehmen der Entsorgungs- und Recyclingbranche ergeben sich mit diesen gesetzlichen Neuerungen neue Chancen auf Weiterentwicklung ihres Geschäftsfeldes. Besonderes Augenmerk gilt den Demontageunternehmen, mit deren Hilfe erst die gesetzlichen Forderungen, hinsichtlich der zu erzielenden Rückgewinnungsquoten und der notwendigen selektiven Behandlung einiger Baugruppen, erfüllt werden können. Die Rückgewinnung hochwertiger Metalle aus Elektro(nik)schrott bedarf im Hinblick der Preissteigerungen auf den Rohstoffmärkten höchster Priorität. Mit Etablierung eines Sekundärrohstoffmarktes kann ein rohstoffarmes Land wie Deutschland der Abhängigkeit des Importes von Primärrohstoffen signifikant entgegenwirken.

Cotutelle de thèse, Institut d'études politiques de Paris, Centre d'histoire de Sciences Po Paris Pour respecter les droits d’auteur, la version électronique de cette thèse a été dépouillée de certains documents visuels et audio‐visuels. La version intégrale de la thèse a été déposée à la Division de la gestion des documents et des archives. / Cette thèse revisite certains grands thèmes associés à l’économie à travers des analyses d’œuvres d’art. Nous proposons de mettre en question l’image, très souvent relayée en histoire de l’art, d’une économie actuelle essentiellement abstraite et détachée des conditions politiques. Dans un premier temps, nous revenons sur la définition même de l’économie. Nous identifions certains principes théoriques servant de légitimation aux discours qui entretiennent l’idée d’une neutralité des objectifs économiques. Puis nous construisons un cadre théorique à la croisée de plusieurs courants de pensée en sciences humaines et sociales, afin d’inscrire la vision de l’économie dans des dimensions politiques et matérielles. Nous réalisons ensuite une analyse de trois performances de l’artiste argentine Marta Minujín. Nous suivons l’artiste quant à l’importance qu’elle accorde aux matières premières, qui deviennent ainsi notre principal moyen d’enquête et de réflexion. Afin de renouveler la vision de l’économie à travers l’analyse d’œuvres d’art, nous conjuguons des comparaisons iconographiques inédites avec une mise à jour de la compréhension des contextes historiques, reposant notamment sur la récente littérature en analyse des systèmes-monde et en économie écologique, et nous présentons des réflexions abouties sur plusieurs concepts majeurs du fonctionnement économique, tels que la monnaie, la dette, le profit et la valeur. Nous montrons ainsi la polysémie du dispositif mis en place par l’artiste, et sa capacité à révéler des dynamiques politiques, territoriales et matérielles récurrentes qui soutiennent le fonctionnement de l’économie. Nous explorons comment les œuvres renversent la hiérarchie habituelle des subordinations économiques, et comment elles en débusquent les origines et les prolongements jusqu’à ce jour. Nous voyons également comment les performances de Marta Minujín pointent et confrontent les arrangements consensuels qui garantissent l’enrichissement économique. / This thesis revisits a number of major economic themes through an in-depth analysis of three works of art. It seeks to interrogate the prevailing conception of the contemporary economy as an abstract domain detached from political concerns—a conception commonly found in art historical texts. The first chapter of this thesis reassesses the definition of the economy. I identify a set of theoretical principles that serve to legitimate the idea that economic objectives are neutral. In the second chapter, I build a theoretical framework at the crossroads of several bodies of thought in the social sciences and humanities, in view of putting forward a renewed conception of the economy, anchored in political and material considerations. I then turn to my analysis of three performances by Argentinian artist Marta Minujín. Taking a cue from the artist's approach, I use raw materials as a prism of analysis and reflection. I combine novel comparative analyses of works of art with a fresh re-examination of key moments in the history of capitalism, drawing on recent literature on world-systems analysis and ecological economics, among others. I also present extensive reflections on a number of important economic concepts, namely money, debt, profit and value. In so doing, I expose the polysemic nature of Minujín’s performances and highlight their capacity to reveal recurring political, territorial and material dynamics undergirding the economy. I explore the ways in which Minujín’s works overturn the traditional hierarchy of economic subordination all the while revealing its historical roots and present-day manifestations. Lastly, I show how Marta Minujín’s performances highlight and challenge the consensual deals and arrangements that guarantee economic profit-making.

Restaurangutläggen har ökat sedan 2010 och efterfrågan på lokalt producerad mat har ökat allt mer senaste tiden, vars syfte inte längre enbart syftar till att mätta idag. Trender har lett till att mervärden inom mat såsom kvalité, hållbarhet och ursprung efterfrågas, varpå restauranger har anpassat sig till detta för att skapa en matupplevelse. Restauranger efterfrågar därmed en större kvantitet av lokalt producerade råvaror. Grossister verkar mellan producenter och restauranger som en länk för att förmedla råvaror och dess mervärde, men trots det finns brister vid förmedlingen. Tidigare studier har påvisat att lokala producenter har hög kunskap inom sin produktion, men lägre kunskaper inom marknadsföring. Studien syftar till att studera värdekedjan mellan producent, grossist och restaurang samt förutsättningar för en grossists värdeskapande på en lokal marknad. För att kunna besvara syftet besvaras tre forskningsfrågor, vilka ämnar till att öka förståelsen för hur värdekedjan ser ut på en lokal marknad samt öka förståelse kring grossistens roll som värdeskapande aktör. Resultatet av studien visar att värdekedjan fungerar, men att det finns brister vid förmedlingen av mervärde mellan aktörerna. Mellan varje aktör verkar distributionskanaler var mervärden flödar. Ytterligare mervärden konstaterades efterfrågas, vilka inte framgick bland alla aktörer. Vidare kunde det konstateras att det råder otydligheter kring begreppet distribution, vilket anses vara en orsakande faktor till den brist kring förmedling av mervärde som råder idag. Studien har bidragit till att belysa de brister som råder idag, för att öka medvetenhet kring dessa. Vidare har en SWOT-analys lyft fram aspekter som anses vara väsentliga att ta hänsyn till. Studien anses därför vara till nytta för aktörer inom livsmedelsbranschen, specifikt de som verkar på en lokal marknad. / Restaurant outlays have increased since 2010 and the demand for locally produced food has increased more recently, the purpose of which is no longer solely to fill today. Trends have created other demands which restaurants have adapted to, to create a dining experience. Restaurants are thus demanding a larger quantity of locally produced raw ingredients. Wholesalers operate between producers and restaurants as a link to mediate raw ingredients and their added value. Yet, there are deficiencies in the mediation. Previous studies have shown that local producers are knowledgeable in their production, but less knowledgeable in marketing. The purpose is to study the value chain between producer, wholesaler, and restaurant as well as the conditions for a wholesaler's value creation in a local market. To be able to answer the purpose, three research questions have been proposed, which aim to increase the understanding of how the value chain looks like in a local market and increase the understanding of a wholesaler's role as a value-creating actor. The results of the study show that the value chain works, but that there is a deficiency in the mediation of added value between the actors. Distribution channels seem to flow between each actor where added value flows. Other added values were found to be in demand, which was not apparent among all actors. Furthermore, it was found that there is some ambiguity about the concept of distribution, which is considered to be a causative factor for the lack of value-added mediation that prevails today. The study has contributed to highlighting the shortcomings that exist today, to raise awareness of these. Furthermore, a SWOT-analysis has highlighted aspects that are considered to be essential to take into account. The study is therefore considered to be of benefit to actors in the food industry, specifically those operating on a local market.

The diploma thesis deals with research and subsequent development of a new adhesive material for the installation of nonabsorbent basalt elements on silicate foundations under severe exposure conditions. For commercially produced tile adhesives, only primary raw materials are used as fillers. The purpose of this work is to evaluate the possibility of utilization of secondary raw materials as fillers in the tile adhesive. The thesis is mainly focused on the durability of these materials after exposure to the aggressive environment.

The success of a cement production project depends on the raw material supply. Longterm quarry production planning (LTQPP) is essential to maintain the supply to the cement plant. The quarry manager usually attempts to fulfil the complicated calculations, ensuring a consistent supply of raw materials to the cement plant while guaranteeing technical and operational parameters in mining. Modern quarry management relies on block models and mathematical algorithms integrated into the software to optimize the LTQPP. However, this method is potentially sensitive to geological uncertainty in resource estimation, resulting in the deviation of the supply production of raw materials. More importantly, quarry managers lack the means to deal with these requirements of LTQPP. This research develops a stochastic optimization framework based on the combination of geostatistical simulation, clustering, and optimization techniques to optimize the LTQPP. In this framework, geostatistical simulation techniques aim to model the quarry deposit while capturing the geological uncertainty in resource estimation. The clustering techniques are to aggregate blocks into selective mining cuts that reduce the optimization problem size and generate solutions in a practical timeframe. Optimization techniques were deployed to develop a new mathematical model to minimize the cost of producing the raw mix for the cement plant and mitigate the impact of geological uncertainty on the raw material supply. Matlab programming platform was chosen for implementing the clustering and optimization techniques and creating the software application. A case study of a limestone deposit in Southern Vietnam was carried out to verify the proposed framework and optimization models. Geostatistical simulation is applied to capture and transfer geological uncertainty into the optimization process. The optimization model size decreases significantly using the block clustering techniques and allowing generate solutions in a reasonable timeframe on ordinary computers. By considering mining and blending simultaneously, the optimization model minimizes the additive purchases to meet blending requirements and the amount of material sent to the waste dump. The experiments are also compared with the traditional optimization framework currently used for the deposit. The comparisons show a higher chance of ensuring a consistent supply of raw materials to the cement plant with a lower cost in the proposed framework. These results proved that the proposed framework provides a powerful tool for planners to optimize the LTQPP while securing the raw material supply in cement operations under geological uncertainty.:Title page _ i Declaration_ ii Acknowledgements _ i Publications during candidature_ii Abstract _iii Table of contents _v List of figures_viii List of tables _ xi List of abbreviations _xii Chapter 1 . Introduction _1 1.1 Background _1 1.2 Statement of the problem _2 1.3 Research aims and objectives_ 3 1.4 Scope of research _4 1.5 Research methodology _ 4 1.6 Significance of theresearch_5 1.7 Organization of thesis _6 Chapter 2 . Literature review _ 8 2.1 Introduction _ 8 2.2 Cement raw materials _8 2.3 Cement production process _ 8 2.3.1 Raw material recovery _9 2.3.2 Raw material processing_10 2.4 Impact of raw materials on the cement production process _12 2.5 Quarry planning and optimization _13 2.6 Long-term production planning (LTPP) problem _14 2.6.1 Deterministic approaches to solve the LTPP problem_15 2.6.2 Stochastic approaches for solving the LTPP problem_21 2.7 Conclusion_26 Chapter 3 . A stochastic optimization framework for LTQPP problem_28 3.1 Introduction_28 3.2 Deposit simulation_29 3.2.1 Simulating the rock type domains using SIS_30 3.2.2 Simulating the chemical grades within each domain conditionally to rock type domains, using SGS_30 3.3 Block clustering _31 3.4 The mathematical formulation for the LTQPP problem_32 3.4.1 Notation_34 3.4.2 Mathematical formulation_36 3.5 Numerical modelling_39 3.5.1 Clustering _39 3.5.2 SMIP formulation_41 3.6 Conclusion _47 Chapter 4 . Hierarchical simulation of cement raw material deposit_ 49 4.1 Introduction _49 4.2 Research area _ 50 4.2.1 General description_50 4.2.2. Data set_50 4.3. Application of hierarchical simulation _53 4.3.1 Rock-type simulation _ 53 4.3.2 Grade simulation _60 4.4. Discussion_73 4.5. Conclusion_76 Chapter 5 . Application of the stochastic optimization framework_77 5.1 Introduction_77 5.2 Implementation of KHRA _77 5.3 Implementation of the SMIP model _78 5.3.1 Sensitivity of the penalty cost _80 5.3.2 The effectiveness of the SMIP model _82 5.4 Risk mitigation _85 5.5 Conclusion _87 Chapter 6 . Conclusions and future works _ 89 6.1 Conclusions _89 6.2 Future works _91 References_ 93 Appendix I. Software Application _100 A.I.1 Introduction _100 A.I.2 Input preparation _101 A.I.2.1 Format of block model input _101 A.I.2.2 Import block model input _102 A.I.2.2 Cost assignment _104 A.I.2.3 Size reduction _ 107 A.I.3 Optimization _110 A.I.3.1 Destination _110 A.I.3.2 Production capacity _ 111 A.I.3.3 Additive purchase _ 111 A.I.3.4 Pit slopes _ 111 A.I.3.5 Optimization _ 112 A.I.4 Visualization of optimization results _112

The change in the country's specialization has become a determining factor in changing the position of China in the world raw materials markets. Over the past 40 years China had been providing the catching up strategy, which led to spectacular economic transformation. The transformations included the rapid economic growth and increase of the welfare of the people, which were achieved by structural changes in the economy. The purpose of the research is to study the changes in China's specialization in the international division of labor as one of the effects of the catching up strategy. The most effective way of structural transformation of the economy is the catching up strategy with attracting foreign direct investment. The history of China's catching up strategy contains several stages with the structural transformations. The reforms in foreign trade, investment, industry have influenced on changes in the structure of the economy. At the present time China has become a major exporter of FDI. The extraction of raw materials is the main direction of its investment. During an econometric assessment of the factors, which contribute to the welfare of the people of China, it was found that industrial exports had increasingly influenced. With the increase of industrial exports by 1%, per capita GDP in China is growing at $ 2.13 million. However, the results are preliminary due to the lack of observations and can be further refined. Measures to support Chinese industrial exports are aimed not only at increasing foreign trade, but also at developing domestic trade through the import of foreign technology and attracting foreign investment. / Определяющим в изменении позиции Китая на мировых рынках сырья стало изменение специализации страны. За последние 40 лет Китай подвергся впечатляющим экономическим преобразованиям, осуществляя стратегию догоняющего развития. Преобразования нашли свое отражение в быстром экономическом росте и повышению благосостояния народа, которые были достигнуты структурными сдвигами в экономике. Наиболее эффективный способ структурной трансформации экономики — догоняющее развитие с привлечением ПИИ. История догоняющего развития Китая содержит несколько этапов по мере которых происходили соответствующие структурные преобразования. В наибольшей степени на изменение структуры экономики оказали влияние реформы в сфере внешней торговли и инвестиций, а также промышленности. На современном этапе Китай превратился в крупного экспортера ПИИ. Добыча сырья является главным направлением их вложения. В ходе эконометрической оценки факторов, способствующий росту благосостояния народа Китая было выявлено, что в наибольшей степени влияет промышленный экспорт. При увеличении экспорта промышленности на 1%, ВВП на душу населения Китая увеличивается на 2,13 млн. долларов. Однако, результаты носят предварительный характер из-за недостатка наблюдений и в дальнейшем могут быть доработаны. Меры поддержки китайского экспорта промышленности направлены не только на увеличение внешней торговли, но и на развитие внутренней за счёт импорта иностранных технологий и привлечения иностранных инвестиций.

Tungsten (W) is listed among the European Union (EU) critical raw materials (CRMs) for its supply risk and economic importance. Primarily, tungsten is produced from scheelite and wolframite mineral ores with 0.08-1.5% tungsten trioxide (WO3) grade. However, as primary deposits for these resources are becoming less or lower in grade, alternative sources need to be explored. These alternative tungsten sources include scrap from end-of-life products, mine waste and rejects from the ore beneficiation processes (tailings). The latter alternative source is the focus within this thesis. Historical tailings repositories often pose environmental risks but may also become secondary sources of CRMs. This is because of relatively high minerals and metals content due to less efficient extraction methods and/or relatively low metal prices at the time of active mining. Therefore, reprocessing of such tailings is not only a supply risk-reducing measure but also an approach to remediation that contributes to the mining industry’s aim of moving towards a circular economy. The aim of this thesis has been to develop efficient methods for separating valuable minerals from the tailings in order to leave behind a stable and environmentally safe residue. Geometallurgical studies were conducted by collecting drill core samples from the Smaltjärnen tailings repository in Yxsjöberg, Sweden, for evaluating the potential of this repository for further processing. The tailings were originally produced from the ore that was mined by Yxsjö Mines while it was in operation from 1935 to 1963, with average ore grades of 0.3-0.4 wt.% WO3, 0.2 wt.% Cu and 5-6 wt.% fluorspar. The exploited minerals were scheelite for W, chalcopyrite for Cu and fluorspar. The tailings repository is estimated to have about 2.2 million tons of tailings covering an area of 26 hectares, with elemental concentrations of 1-2 wt.% S, 0.02-0.2 wt.% Cu, 0.02-0.3 wt.% W, 0.02-0.04 wt.% Sn and 0.02-0.03 wt.% Be. Sampling and characterization of the historical tailings were conducted based on geometallurgical units (i.e. a distinction between different layers and locations in the repository), followed by metallurgical test work. The tailings were characterized with regard to color and granulometry, particle size distribution, chemical composition, scheelite mineral occurrence, texture and mineral liberation, as well as mineralogical composition. Based on a comprehensive literature survey, tailings characteristics, and assessment of the earlier processes from which the Yxsjöberg tailings were produced, feasible separation methods were pre-selected involving dry low-intensity magnetic separation (LIMS) and high intensity magnetic separation (HIMS), enhanced gravity separation (EGS) using a Knelson concentrator, and batch froth flotation. The average WO3 and Cu concentration in these tailings based on the sampled locations was 0.15 % and 0.11 % respectively. Applying them to the estimated 2.2 million tons of tailings in this repository gives approximately 3300 tons of WO3 and 2512 tons of Cu. From the metallurgical test work, several feasible processing routes have been identified that need to be further assessed based on the economic and environmental criteria. / REMinE (Improve Resource Efficiency and Minimize Environmental Footprint)