Plastic
Created | Updated Jan 28, 2002
Plastic is the term given to what should technically be known as a polymer. In a chemical reaction, a number of monomers are put together, and by taking advantage of the instability of the carbon-carbon double bond, they can all be rammed together nose to arse, forming incomprehensibly huge polymer chains. The monomers are extracted from crude oil, which is mined from the ground.
Essentially two types of plastic exist - those that consist of long strands (called thermosoftening plastics) and those that also contain short cross-links (called thermosetting). The thermosetting plastics are understandably much stronger, but once they have been formed into a shape, they will hold that shape indefinitely, and where the thermosoftening plastic will deform under heating, the thermosetting plastic will retain its shape, until the heat gets too much for it and it burns.
The great advantages of plastics are that they are relatively cheap to produce, they are easily moulded (and remoulded, in the case of the thermosoftening plastic), they are light, and because of their inert nature and smooth surface, they are safe for use in contact with food, for they neither rot nor house bacteria.
Plastics are used everywhere - from plastic bags and electric plugs to light fittings, insulation and computer mice. You love plastics. Plastic is your friend.
Chemistry lecture ends.
Essentially two types of plastic exist - those that consist of long strands (called thermosoftening plastics) and those that also contain short cross-links (called thermosetting). The thermosetting plastics are understandably much stronger, but once they have been formed into a shape, they will hold that shape indefinitely, and where the thermosoftening plastic will deform under heating, the thermosetting plastic will retain its shape, until the heat gets too much for it and it burns.
The great advantages of plastics are that they are relatively cheap to produce, they are easily moulded (and remoulded, in the case of the thermosoftening plastic), they are light, and because of their inert nature and smooth surface, they are safe for use in contact with food, for they neither rot nor house bacteria.
Plastics are used everywhere - from plastic bags and electric plugs to light fittings, insulation and computer mice. You love plastics. Plastic is your friend.
Chemistry lecture ends.
