2.3 Integrated Meta System and the Central Role of the Inventory The proposed framework operates as a meta-system in which Process Optimisation (PO) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) run in parallel from a single, consistent data intake. Scenario outputs—energy, recovery, throughput, grade, and availability—are directly converted into carbon-related signals using the functional unit selected for the optimisation question. Integration is achieved through shared scope and boundaries, a shared inventory in which PO operational variables also form the LCA inventory, parallel scenario modelling where PO simulations generate performance outputs that LCA translates into carbon metrics, and joint interpretation in which technical and environmental KPIs are examined together to reveal trade-offs not visible from energy-only analyses. In conventional optimisation studies, process variables are analysed with quantitative precision; however, environmentally significant inputs—such as media wear, liners, reagents, and maintenance—are operationally known but rarely incorporated into scenario-based simulation logic. This limits visibility of environmental consequences and disconnects process, mechanical, and sustainability considerations. By positioning the life cycle inventory as the point of convergence between operational performance and material consumption, sustainability becomes evaluable as a process-level KPI rather than as a separate reporting exercise 3. CARBON BEYOND ENERGY: WHERE IMPACTS SIT Energy intensity (kWh/t) remains a key performance indicator in mineral processing, closely linked to throughput, product size, and circuit stability. However, as the carbon intensity associated with electricity (Scope 2) continues to decline in many jurisdictions, the environmental relevance of kWh/t as a standalone proxy is declining. In this context, a growing share of concentrator-related emissions originates from upstream processes embedded in consumables, equipment, and services influenced by routine process decisions. This section reframes carbon emissions in terms of processing evaluation, including grinding media consumption, liner wear, and reagent consumption, and examines how common optimisation variables influence the distribution of emissions across these channels. The intent is to make the carbon impact of process decisions visible within the same analytical framework used for energy, throughput, product size, and recovery. 3.1 Conceptual Breakdown of Carbon Channels in a Concentrator Within a gate-to-gate concentrator boundary, consistent with the framework defined in Section 2, carbon emissions can be grouped into four main channels: (i) electricity and fuels associated with comminution, pumping, agitation, and auxiliary equipment; (ii) grinding media and liners representing cradle-to-gate emissions from raw material production, manufacturing, and transport of consumables supplied to site (excluding relining activity); (iii) reagents and process consumables linked to chemical
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTM0Mzk2