Sulfur in the form of sulfuric acid is a crucial part of our modern industrial society. It is required for the production of phosphorus fertiliser and manufacturing lightweight electric motors and high-performance lithium-ion batteries. Over 246 million tonnes of sulfuric acid are used annually. Rapid growth in the green economy and intensive agriculture could see demand increase to over 400 million tonnes by 2040. Today over 80% of the global sulfur supply comes from desulfurisation of fossil fuels to reduce emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO₂) gas. Decarbonisation of the global economy to deal with climate change will greatly reduce the production of fossil fuels. This will create a shortfall in the annual supply of sulfuric acid of between 100 and 320 million tonnes by 2040, depending on how quickly decarbonisation occurs. Unless action is taken to reduce the need for sulfuric acid, a massive increase in environmentally damaging mining will be required to fill this resource demand.

中文翻译：

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硫：随着世界脱碳，潜在的资源危机可能会扼杀绿色技术并威胁粮食安全

硫酸形式的硫是我们现代工业社会的重要组成部分。它是生产磷肥和制造轻型电动机和高性能锂离子电池所必需的。每年使用超过 2.46 亿吨硫酸。到 2040 年，绿色经济和集约化农业的快速增长可能会使需求增加到 4 亿多吨。如今，全球 80% 以上的硫磺供应来自化石燃料的脱硫，以减少二氧化硫 (SO ₂） 气体。全球经济脱碳以应对气候变化将大大减少化石燃料的生产。到 2040 年，这将导致硫酸年供应量短缺 100 至 3.2 亿吨，具体取决于脱碳发生的速度。除非采取行动减少对硫酸的需求，否则将需要大量增加对环境有害的采矿活动来满足这一资源需求。