Since the invention of plastic, it has become one of the most predominant materials used in every industry. Plastic manufacturers have advanced processes to meet increasing demand and provide cutting edge plastic solutions. This video explains how plastic is refined and produced.
Plastic is a byproduct of crude oil. The oil is extracted from the earth using a pump. The crude oil is then sent to a refining facility which changes the chemical compounds in the oil for various uses. Some of the oil is turned into gasoline, some into asphalt, and some into naphtha.
Naphtha is then sent to a cracking center for further refining. It is heated up and broken down, then refined into ethylene, propylene, butadiene, and petroleum either. The ethylene is the main ingredient manufacturers use in plastic.
The ethylene is compressed and cooled, then sent to a reaction chamber. In the reaction chamber, intiatives are added and polymerization takes place. This converts the ethylene to polyethylene. The polyethylene is formed into strings and then pellets, which are used to make the plastic products we use every day.
The pellets are melted and formed into plastic products. For more information on the production of plastic, check out the video in the link above.