World Materials Jun 8, 2020 Last updated: Jul 5, 2020
I think at some point, it is going to be worthwhile to map an extensive value chain from raw materials to finished products. Meanwhile, I'm collecting a flat list of items.
Organisms CO2 _2 2 ​ Key macronutrients - NPK CaCO3 _3 3 ​ (calcite/aragonite) - marine biomineralizers Si(OH)4 _4 4 ​ (silicic acid) - opal structures Prehistoric Obsidian, flint - cutting, piercing Basalt, rhyolite, greenstone - pounding, pulverizing yew, white ash, black locust, osage orange - bows quicklime CaO - pottery hydrated lime - whitewash, mortar, plaster Cotton, wool Medieval Silt, Limestone Copper, Tin - ornaments, military Iron - tools, weapons, nails for ships, houses houses Clay Bricks Porcelain Glass Bronze, brass Gunpowder - mixture of charcoal, sulphur, and potassium nitrate Early Modern Metallurgical coke - for "industrial" scale iron-smelting Gold Silver Modern Cylinder glass, crown glass --> Flat grass Asbestos Tin Asphalt Concrete, reinforced concrete Steel Aluminium - Bauxite (Al2 _2 2 ​ O3 _3 3 ​ ) Paper - with mechanical pulping, chemical pulping Gas Liquefaction Fuelwood & Wood SiO2 _2 2 ​ - optical fibers, sandstone, quartz Stainless steel - cutlery, surgical implants Titanium Copper - wiring, plumbing Zinc Lead - tetraethyl-lead to prevent engine knocking Silicon PlasticStyrene Cellulose Acetate Polyvinylidine Chloride Polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon) Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) Mylar nitrogen