MATERIALS AND DEMATERIALIZATION World-renowned scientist Vaclav Smil examines a critical topic in the research and policy domain of sustainable resource use

Over the course of time, the modern world has…

This volume examines China’s energy resources, their uses, impacts and prospects, from the 1970s oil crisis to the present day, before analysing the key question of how China can best…

A comprehensive, systematic, analytically unified, and interdisciplinary treatment of energy in nature and society, from solar radiation and photosynthesis to our fossil fuelled civilization and its environmental consequences.

The industrial synthesis of ammonia from nitrogen and hydrogen has been of fundamental importance in the modern world. This book looks at the discovery of ammonia synthesis by Fritz Haber…

This bold and controversial argument shows why energy transitions are inherently complex and prolonged affairs, and how ignoring this fact raises unrealistic expectations that the United States and other global…

The world is never finished catching up with Vaclav Smil. In his latest and perhaps most readable book, Invention and Innovation, the prolific author--a favorite of Bill Gates--pens an insightful…

Although the last two generations have seen an enormous amount of attention paid to advances in electronics, the fact remains that high-income, high-energy societies could thrive without microchips, etc., but…

A comprehensive account of how energy has shaped society throughout history, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today’s fossil fuel-driven civilization.