How plastic is made
Negotiations on a treaty to limit plastic pollution takes place in Nairobi until November 19. How is plastic made? Mostly from crude oil, as this videographic explains. VIDEOGRAPHIC
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00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:03 Most plastics come from crude oil.
00:09 It is first heated to a high temperature in a refinery
00:12 and then sent to a distillation tower
00:14 to separate various components.
00:17 The heaviest products settle at the bottom of the tower,
00:20 while the lighter ones rise to the top.
00:23 One of these products is naphtha,
00:25 which is a liquid used in most plastics.
00:28 In petrochemical plants, naphtha undergoes a treatment
00:31 known as steam cracking.
00:33 The liquid is diluted with steam and heated to 800 degrees
00:37 Celsius, then cooled to 400 degrees.
00:42 Naphtha is transformed into gases
00:44 such as ethylene and propylene, which then undergo
00:47 a chemical reaction called polymerization
00:50 to create plastic.
00:52 The substance leaves the plant in powder or granulated form.
00:58 To shape it, manufacturers use extruders.
01:01 Granules are heated and mixed by a twin screw,
01:04 then shaped using a mold that fits the final product.
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