Science

The method of extrusion is one of the main processes in regards to the manufacturing of plastic. Extrusion refers to the process of forming a piece of plastic through the use of certain shaping...

Vacuum molding, also called vacuum-forming or vacuforming, is a fast, simple way to make parts from plastic. It is used at all skill levels, from hobbyists to large manufacturing companies. Parts...

Plastic parts can be coated with a thin layer of metal for aesthetic, conduction, and static reduction purposes. Coating plastic parts with metal is difficult, because traditional metal coating...

High density polyethylene (HDPE) is a long-chain polymer or plastic. Polyethylene is the most common form of plastic in the world and can be processed in a number of ways to make it thin,...

Thermoplastics are the most malleable type of plastics available for use. Most highly flexible plastics, such as plastic wrap, are types thermoplastic. Other types of thermoplastics are very hard...

A plastic extrusion system converts a granulated plastic resin into a final product with a constant cross section. A plastic extruder consists of four parts: a gravity-fed hopper, a drive screw,...

Recycling saves energy primarily because it reduces the need to extract and refine natural resources. For many materials, the energy to recycle is less than the energy needed to make it from...

Magnetic levitation is an amazing effect that can play tricks on the eyes and improve nearly any project. Levitation occurs when similar poles of magnets repel each other in a confined area. Some...

BPA exposure has caused a stir amongst consumers and researchers alike. The release of BPA from plastic drinking bottles is suspect in the development of cancer, attention deficit disorder (ADD)...

Shrink-wrapping of compact discs serves several different purposes. In addition to presenting a professional look for data and music CDs, shrink-wrapping helps to protect the disc from dust,...

According to the American Chemistry Council (ACC), using plastic bags instead of paper bags provides an excellent opportunity to be a little more green. Not only does the production of plastic...

Answering whether plastic can be recycled is not straightforward. Plastic containers and packaging, unlike glass and aluminum, are made from a variety of compounds and not a single source....

Not all plastic is created equal when it comes to recycling. To help consumers understand what they can recycle, The Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) created a numerical coding system in...

A microscope is an instrument used for looking at objects that are too small to see with the naked eye. A microscope has a magnifier built in to see things close up and personal. This tool is used...

Styrofoam, also known by generic name polystyrene, is a type of plastic that is made of expanded polystyrene beads. Urban legends abound on the potential side-effects and health risks associated...

There may come a time in your life when you have a pile of salt and pepper mixed together and you feel compelled to separate it. Don't ask me why you'd want to do this; you're the one reading this...

Blow molding is a process commonly used to create plastic objects. In general, the process consists of generating a tubular form, referred to as a parison. The parison is placed into a mold and...

A siphon is a device that moves a liquid from a reservoir to a receptacle at a lower level. The primary difference between a siphon and a drain is that the siphon has an intermediate section...

There are eight major types of plastic molding processes: 1. Injection molding 2. Rotational molding 3. Thermoforming 4. Structural foam molding 5. Gas assist molding 6. Blow...

Have you ever wanted to make plastic? There are good reasons for making your own, safely. This plastic-making instruction can be used for making crafts, a molded part, or children’s science...

Strong, but not heavy, and with a relatively high melting point for a plastic, polypropylene sees use in many commercial and specialized products. Polypropylene also has the benefits of being...

The graduated cylinder is a tall, thin container used to measure the volume of liquids. It is a very common piece of laboratory equipment. Chemists use graduated cylinders just as you would use...

Many resources go into the production and distribution of plastic bags, which then are used only briefly. This in contrast to their longevity afterwards, during which they risk being eaten by...

In America, the trend towards an eco-friendly society continues to grow. Recycling leads this trend. In 2007, approximately 1/3 of the garbage created was recycled. The Society of the Plastics...

Plastic can be found everywhere in our society, from the bottles that store our water and sodas to the bags that hold our groceries. Recycling for plastics is widely available. Over 2.3 billion...

Paper or plastic? is a choice shoppers have made--or least debated about--for years. Their primary concern centered around where the bags went after they had been used. Paper bags were created...

With curbside recycling becoming widespread and recycling centers popping up, more and more people are turning to recycling when it comes time to dispose of their trash. While almost all paper and...

Plastic bags are made from a ubiquitous polymer substance known as polyethylene. This begins as ethylene, commonly extracted from natural gases, then treated to become the polymer, forming long...

An estimated 200,000 barrels of oil a day go toward making plastic packaging in the United States. Because we use so much plastic and petroleum is a non-renewable resource, it is important to try...

The use of plastic bottles is on the rise. They are used as soft drink containers and to meet the demand for bottled water. The type of plastic used to contain these liquid products is...

All plastic containers and items are marked with a triangle made from three arrows. In the center of the triangle is a number. This symbol doesn't mean that the item is made from recycled plastic,...

Plastic bottles can possibly have harmful effects to those who use them. For example, repeated washing in a hot dishwasher releases the estrogen Bisphenol A (BPA). If the bottle becomes litter...

The proliferation of plastic products and ever-decreasing landfill space combine for a good reason to recycle plastic. Not all plastics are created equal, however, so it is important to understand...

Hydrogen is a gas that has some interesting properties, it is HIGHLY flammable for one, also it can be made very easily, you just have to take the H out of H2O. Here's how...

The cheapest way to remove salt from water is by using a solar water distiller. Think of a solar distiller as the same natural process of the sun heating water in our oceans, turning it into gas...

About 50 kinds of plastic are commonly used, and the ones in widest use include HDPE, PVC and PET. Plastic recycling refers to the entire procedure of taking used plastics and transforming the...

The easiest method of removing salt from salt water is a process called distillation. The water is heated, turned to a gas, condensed and collected in a purified form. The salt will be left...

Around 1.5 million tons of plastic bottles are being produced annually. Unfortunately, less than 13 percent of this volume is being reused, so most of the plastic bottles end up in landfills. In...

The symbols on the bottom of plastic bottles include a number inside three arrows that form a triangle, and letters underneath. These symbols designate the type of plastic from which the item is...

Recycling of plastics is challenging because of the diverse nature of the many different compounds of plastics. These different forms make for difficulties in sorting and breaking down of the...

The products of plastic extrusion surround us everyday. In fact, the toothbrush that you used this morning was created by large plastic extrusion machines. Not to mention the computer, keyboard...

Mathematicians and scientists are notorious for the tools they implement to make their lives and jobs easier. One of the more arcane tools is the slide ruler, which has been replaced for some by...

Thermoforming plastic is a polymer that is heated and molded to create smooth, seamless products of many shapes and sizes. Polymers are materials like plastic or rubber, with large molecules that...

Polarized glasses create the impression of 3D by restricting some light waves from reaching your eyes. The polarizing plastic filters out all light waves, except for the ones going in a certain...

Making a hovercraft out of a leaf blower is a quick and easy project. This hovercraft is powered by a leaf blower. This hovercraft is large enough to bear the weight of a person (depending on the...

Plastic water bottles are manufactured in two ways. The first method involves a two-step process with the use of preforms or parsions which are shaped like a test tube. This is called the...

A plastic is a very common substance comprised of long carbon chains. Plastic is a polymer, which means that it is made of many monomers (single molecules, in this case, of carbon). There are...

The hovercraft is quite possibly one of the coolest methods of travel ever invented. Modern day hovercraft have the ability to travel over any smooth surface, such as land, ice, or water by using...

Vacuum formers are used to form plastic products that range from salad bowls to kayaks and canoes. They vary in size from a tabletop model to those that take up the space of a large three-car...

Styrofoam is the commonly known brand name for a type of molded plastic foam called polystyrene. Many types of items are made from Styrofoam, including plates, cups and packing materials....