Maya Ellison
Plastic is everywhere, and it's hard to imagine life without it. From packaging to consumer goods, plastic has made our lives more convenient and efficient. However, this convenience comes at a cost. Plastic is a major pollutant, and its production and disposal harm our health and the environment. So, how is plastic produced? Plastic production starts with the extraction of fossil fuels like coal, crude oil, and natural gas through mining and
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Plastic type | Synthetic or biobased |
| Synthetic plastic derivation | Crude oil, natural gas or coal |
| Biobased plastic derivation | Renewable products such as carbohydrates, starch, vegetable fats and oils, bacteria and other biological substances |
| Plastic composition | High molecular weight organic polymers composed of various elements such as carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur and chlorine |
| Plastic production process | Polymerisation and polycondensation |
| Plastic production starting point | Distillation of crude oil in an oil refinery |
| Plastic production monomers | Ethylene and propylene |
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What You'll Learn
- Plastic is made from fossil fuels, including crude oil and natural gas
- Refinery plants process fossil fuels to obtain ethane and propane
- Cracking breaks down ethane and propane into ethylene and propylene
- Polymerization reassembles molecules into long chains to make plastic
- Plastic is moulded into shape, with additives to enhance properties
Plastic is made from fossil fuels, including crude oil and natural gas
Plastic is derived from natural, organic materials, including fossil fuels such as crude oil and natural gas. Crude oil is a complex mixture of thousands of compounds and must be processed before it can be used to create plastic. The production of plastic begins with the distillation of crude oil in an oil refinery, which separates the heavy crude oil into lighter components called fractions. Each fraction is a mixture of hydrocarbon chains, which are chemical compounds made up of carbon and hydrogen. One of these fractions, naphtha, is a crucial compound for the production of plastics.
Naphtha and other oils refined from crude oil are used as feedstocks for petrochemical crackers that produce the basic building blocks for making plastics. While crude oil is a source of raw material for making plastics, it is not the major source of feedstock for plastics production in the United States. Instead, natural gas and feedstocks derived from natural gas processing and crude oil refining are primarily used.
The petrochemical industry has a high degree of flexibility in the feedstock it consumes, and different feedstocks can be used to manufacture plastics. For example, alkanes can be used as feedstock for petrochemical crackers, while refinery olefins, such as propylene, ethylene, and butylenes, can be used as direct inputs into plastics manufacturing. However, it is challenging to identify the actual amounts and origins of the materials used as inputs by the industry to manufacture plastics.
The use of plastic became more widespread during World War II when the US Military experimented with more universal uses. Following the war, commercial plastic demand greatly increased, and manufacturers began to rely on fossil fuels to create cheaper plastic products. As a result, global plastic production increased by 400% in the 1960s and has continued to climb. Today, plastic manufacturing accounts for 12% of global oil consumption, and over 99% of plastic is made from chemicals sourced from fossil fuels.
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Refinery plants process fossil fuels to obtain ethane and propane
Plastic is derived from natural, organic materials such as cellulose, coal, natural gas, salt, and crude oil. Crude oil is a complex mixture of thousands of compounds and needs to be processed before it can be used. The production of plastics begins with the distillation of crude oil in an oil refinery. This separates the heavy crude oil into groups of lighter components, called fractions. Each fraction is a mixture of hydrocarbon chains, which differ in terms of the size and structure of their molecules.
One of the crucial compounds for the production of plastics is naphtha. Two main processes are used to produce plastics: polymerisation and polycondensation. Both require specific catalysts. In a polymerisation reactor, monomers such as ethylene and propylene are linked together to form long polymer chains.
The construction of ethane cracker facilities increases the construction of fracking infrastructure, slowing the transition to clean energy. Climate activists are concerned about the extensive and expensive infrastructure that fills the air and water with toxic chemicals, contributing to the climate crisis.
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Cracking breaks down ethane and propane into ethylene and propylene
The production of plastics begins with the distillation of crude oil in an oil refinery. This separates the heavy crude oil into lighter components, called fractions. One of these fractions, naphtha, is crucial for plastic production. Two processes are used to produce plastics: polymerisation and polycondensation. In a polymerisation reactor, monomers such as ethylene and propylene are linked to form long polymer chains.
Ethylene and propylene are produced through a process called steam cracking. This is a petrochemical process in which saturated hydrocarbons are broken down into smaller, often unsaturated, hydrocarbons. It is the principal industrial method for producing lighter alkenes (commonly known as olefins), including ethene (ethylene) and propene (propylene). Steam cracker units are facilities in which a feedstock such as naphtha, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), ethane, propane or butane is thermally cracked through the use of steam in pyrolysis furnaces to produce lighter hydrocarbons.
The cracking process involves heating the feedstock to a very high temperature of around 850°C, although the reaction only takes place very briefly, sometimes only for milliseconds. This high temperature but short duration improves the yield of the reaction.
In the case of ethane and propane, the feedstock is fed to furnaces where, under high-severity conditions, it is cracked, forming ethylene, propylene and other byproducts. The furnace outlet stream is then fed to a water-based quench to prevent further reactions and the formation of undesirable byproducts. The cracked gas from the quench is then directed to compression and separation.
The compression of the cracked gas is performed in multiple stages. After the third stage of compression, carbon dioxide and sulfur are removed from the cracked gas by caustic soda and water washes. The compressed cracked gas is then cooled and dried to remove any remaining water.
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Polymerization reassembles molecules into long chains to make plastic
Polymerization is a process that chemically bonds monomer molecules to form long chains or networks of polymer molecules. This process is also known as polymer synthesis, and the small molecules that are bonded are called repeating units. The repeating units can be identical or different, resulting in unique characteristics for the plastic products. The polymerization process will differ based on the chemical composition and structure of the starting monomer.
The two most common methods of polymerization are addition and condensation. In addition polymerization, also known as chain-growth polymerization, monomers are added to the growing polymer molecule one at a time through double or triple bonds. This process involves linking unsaturated monomers, particularly those containing carbon-carbon double bonds. Chain-growth polymerization is involved in the manufacture of polymers such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and acrylate.
Condensation polymerization, on the other hand, results in a polymer that is less massive than the monomers that form it because not all of the original monomer is incorporated. Water is often eliminated during this process. Polymers formed through condensation polymerization are called step-growth polymers, and they increase in molecular weight slowly, with long chains forming late in the reaction. An example of a step-growth polymer is polyester, which is formed through the reaction of alcohol and carboxylic acid groups.
The polymerization process can be initiated by an initiator molecule, which can be a radical, cation, anion, or organometallic complex. The process will continue as long as reactants are supplied, allowing the product molecules to grow indefinitely in size. The length of a polymer chain can be quantified by the degree of polymerization, which represents the number of monomers incorporated. The size of a polymer can also be expressed in terms of its molecular weight.
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Plastic is moulded into shape, with additives to enhance properties
Plastic is a polymeric resin often combined with additives to enhance its properties. The process of creating plastic objects involves melt-blending various materials, such as crude oil, natural gas, coal, salt, or renewable biomass, to make formulations for plastics. This mixture is then pelletised and transformed into a finished or semi-finished product through extrusion or moulding.
The moulding process allows plastics to be formed into unique designs with specific sizes, shapes, and colours. During moulding, plasticity, or the ability of a polymer to deform without breaking, is crucial. The polymer must be able to withstand the temperature and pressure applied during the moulding process without losing its integrity.
Additives play a significant role in enhancing the properties of plastics. These chemical substances are added to improve functionality and prolong the life of plastic products. For example, antioxidants and stabilisers are added to polyethylene (PE) to initiate a chain reaction and stabilise the plastic.
The versatility of plastic production lies in the ability to customise the elements used, the types of monomers, and their arrangement. By varying these parameters, manufacturers can alter the shape, molecular weight, and other chemical and physical properties of the final plastic product.
Additionally, the type of moulding process chosen also impacts the characteristics of the plastic product. Extrusion, for instance, involves forcing the plastic through a die or shape to create a continuous profile, resulting in plastic objects with consistent shapes and cross-sections.
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