Maya Ellison
Plastic is an extremely generic term for what chemists and material scientists refer to as 'polymers'. These are very long-chained hydrocarbons, which are built by repeating the same small hydrocarbon over and over. Crude oil, on the other hand, is an unprocessed mixture of hydrocarbons found in the earth. The process of turning crude oil into plastic involves heating the oil to 600-750 degrees Fahrenheit, which is then distilled and broken down into smaller pieces called fractions. These fractions contain hydrocarbons, including gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel, and naphtha—the chemical that becomes plastic.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| What is plastic? | An extremely generic term for what chemists and material scientists call 'polymers'. |
| What are polymers? | Very long-chained hydrocarbons which are built by repeating the same small hydrocarbon over and over. |
| What is crude oil? | An unprocessed mixture of hydrocarbons found in the earth. |
| How is crude oil turned into plastic? | Crude oil is heated over a furnace and distilled, breaking it into smaller pieces called fractions. These fractions contain hydrocarbons, including gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel, bitumen, lubricating oil, residual fuel oil, and naphtha—the chemical that becomes plastic. |
| How many types of plastic can be made from crude oil? | A ton of different processes can be used to get different products from technically the same plastic. For example, nylon can be used to make strong hard plastic products, clothing, and other things with different properties. |
| How much oil is used to make plastic? | As of 2019, 9 million barrels of oil are used to make plastic every day worldwide. |
| Can plastic be made without fossil fuels? | Yes, around 1% of plastic is "biobased", made either fully or partially from resources like the sugars in plants like corn, beets, or potatoes. |
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What You'll Learn
Crude oil extraction
Prospecting
The first step in crude oil extraction is prospecting, which involves identifying potential oil-bearing locations. Geologists play a crucial role in this stage by studying the structure and history of rock layers beneath the Earth's surface. They employ various methods, including seismic surveys, to locate areas that may contain deposits of oil and natural gas. Seismic surveys can be conducted on land or in the ocean, using vibration sources such as trucks or small amounts of explosives to generate echoes or sonic waves that reveal underground geological structures.
Drilling
Once a promising site is identified, the next step is drilling. This stage involves constructing the necessary infrastructure, including access roads and pads, to bring in the drill rig, which can consist of 20 to 30 truckloads of equipment. A well is then drilled straight down into the ground, reaching a depth of about 100 feet below the deepest known aquifer. This initial drilling phase is crucial for preventing any risk of polluting precious water aquifers.
Well Casing Installation
After the surface hole is drilled, a steel casing is installed. This steel pipe, known as the "well casing," is cemented in place to provide structural integrity to the well bore and ensure that it remains impermeable. Rigorous tests are performed to ensure the casing's integrity before proceeding with oil extraction.
Directional Drilling
Following the installation of the well casing, the drilling process continues with directional drilling. The "long hole" technique involves drilling to a depth of about 1000 feet above the target area, where oil and natural gas are trapped. At this point, the hole is steered horizontally, following the same rock bed for another mile or two. This horizontal drilling minimizes the impact on the land above by reducing the number of drill pads required.
Fracturing
Once the drilling reaches the target distance, the drill pipe is removed, and a perforating gun is lowered into the ground. This gun is fired into the rock layer, creating holes that connect the oil-bearing rock to the wellhead. Hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking," is then employed, where a mixture of water, sand, and chemicals is pumped at high pressure through the perforating holes. This process creates cracks in the shale rock, allowing the oil and natural gas to escape from the rock layers.
Extraction and Recovery
Finally, the oil is extracted and brought to the surface. In some cases, the natural pressure in the reservoir may be sufficient to force the oil upwards without the need for pumping. However, if the gas pressure is insufficient, artificial lifting mechanisms such as pumps may be used to enhance the recovery rate. Over time, as the natural reservoir drive diminishes, secondary recovery methods may be applied to maintain or increase reservoir pressure, such as injecting water, steam, acids, or gas mixtures.
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Fractional distillation
During fractional distillation, the mixture is heated, causing the compounds with lower boiling points to turn into vapours, rise to the top of the distillation tube, and condense back into a liquid, where they are collected. The compounds with higher boiling points sink to the bottom of the tube. This process is repeated several times, with the temperature being increased each time, to separate the various compounds in the mixture.
In the context of oil being turned into plastic, fractional distillation is used to separate crude oil into several distinct groups of chemicals, including petroleum, gasoline, paraffin, and naphtha. Naphtha, a chemical that is a primary feedstock for making plastic, is separated from the other compounds in the crude oil based on its molecular weight and boiling point.
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Polymerization
The process of turning oil into plastic involves several steps, one of which is polymerization. Polymerization is a crucial step in the process, where individual monomer ingredients are chemically combined to form long repeating chains known as polymers.
The first step in the process is the extraction of raw materials, primarily crude oil and natural gas, which contain a complex mixture of thousands of compounds. The refining process then transforms this crude oil into different petroleum products, such as naphtha, which serves as the primary feedstock for plastic production.
During polymerization, simplified ethylene and propylene monomers are combined to create the backbone of plastic. These monomers form polyethylene and polypropylene, the two most common polymers globally. The versatility of polyethylene allows for the creation of plastics with varying densities, ranging from flimsy and pliable to sturdy and tough. On the other hand, polypropylene is known for its flexibility and resilience, making it ideal for single-use items like milk cartons, plastic wrappers, and bottles.
The polymer chains that result from polymerization are further processed and mixed with various additives to enhance their functionality and tailor them for specific applications. These additives include antioxidants, foaming agents, plasticizers, and flame retardants. Through these additional steps, the desired properties of the plastic, such as toughness, flexibility, elasticity, and colour, can be achieved.
The final stage involves shaping the polymers into usable products. The polymers are kneaded, heated, melted, and cooled into various shapes, sizes, and colours, resulting in the plastic products we commonly use. This process transforms the polymers from their initial forms as granules, powders, or liquids into the familiar objects that serve numerous purposes in our daily lives.
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Fossil fuel refining
The process of refining crude oil into plastic begins at the refinery, where molasses-like crude oil is heated over a furnace. This heating separates the hydrocarbons in the oil into different groups based on their atomic composition and molecular weight. The longer, heavier hydrocarbons sink, while the shorter, lighter ones rise. This process, known as distillation, separates crude oil into several distinct groups of chemicals, including petroleum, gasoline, and paraffin. One of the products of this process is naphtha, a chemical that serves as the primary feedstock for plastic production.
Naphtha, a petrochemical feedstock refined from crude oil, is used as feedstock for petrochemical crackers that produce the basic building blocks for making plastics. Alkanes, for example, can be used as feedstock for these crackers, while olefins, such as propylene, ethylene, and butylenes, can be used as direct inputs into plastics manufacturing.
The process of refining crude oil into plastics is complex and has environmental implications. Oil-derived plastics can persist in the environment for long periods, gradually breaking down under the influence of sunshine, water, and wind. As they break down, they release greenhouse gases and leach chemicals into the environment.
There is ongoing research into methods for converting plastic waste back into crude oil, which could create a more sustainable circular economy. One such method is HiCOP, which uses catalysts to break down plastics into smaller molecules, eventually converting them into hydrocarbon gases that can be concentrated into crude oil.
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Bioplastics
However, bioplastics have not become a widespread solution to plastic pollution. They are more expensive and less durable than traditional plastics, and they are not truly biodegradable in the sense that they can simply be discarded and broken down. Bioplastics must be recycled or composted in carefully controlled, high-temperature industrial composting facilities, which are currently lacking, especially in developing countries.
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Frequently asked questions
Plastic is a generic term for what chemists and material scientists call 'polymers'. These are very long-chained hydrocarbons.
Crude oil is an unprocessed mixture of hydrocarbons found in the earth. It is extracted from underground reserves using drills and pumps.
Crude oil is heated to a high temperature and distilled. This process, called fractional distillation, breaks the oil into smaller pieces called fractions. These fractions contain hydrocarbons, including naphtha—the chemical that goes on to become plastic.
Different types of plastic are made by creating links between the base chain of hydrocarbons in different ways. For example, polyethylene is made from a long chain of ethylenes, while polypropylene is made from a long chain of propylenes.
Yes, plastic can be made without fossil fuels. Around 1% of plastic is "biobased", made either fully or partially from resources like the sugars in plants such as corn, beets, or potatoes.
