SUBJECT: BASIC TECHNOLOGY

TOPIC: PROCESSING OF MATERIALS

SUB-TOPIC: PLASTIC AND RUBBER

CLASS: JSS 3
PERFORMANCE
OBJECTIVES
At the end of this class, you should be able to:

Differentiate between rubber and plastics.

Explain the methods of processing plastics and rubber.
 State the advantages and disadvantages of each methods.
 Describe the uses of plastics and rubber.
PLASTIC
Plastics are obtained from petroleum products called

monomers. These monomers are used to produce resins

which are used for making plastics.

Types of Plastics
1. Thermoplastics: These are plastics that

melt under heat and hardens when

cooled. They can be reshaped into other

forms, The process of softening and

hardening can be repeated several

times. examples are: nylon, Polyvinyl

chloride (PVC)
2. Thermoset:

These are plastics that does not melt under heat but char

under heat. Once a thermoset is formed, the process of

softening or hardening cannot be repeated. They are used

as handles for pots and enamel dishes.

The general principle in the processing of plastics involves

the following:

i. Pre-heating the resin into a molten state.

ii. Forcing the molten plastic into a mould to acquire a

desired shape.
 METHODS FOR PROCESSING OF
PLASTICS
• Injection moulding:

In this method, the resin is fed into a heating

chamber through the hopper. A plunger is then

used to force the molten plastic into the required

mould. This method can be used for making

water bottles.
• Extrusion moulding:
This is the more common plastic forming process used today.

The extrusion machine has a large funnel called hopper where

raw material is poured, heating section where the raw material

is heated and becomes liquid.

In extrusion, the heated plastic mixture is forced through

the forming die made in the desired shape. The shape of

the forming die determines the shape of plastic to be made

This method is used in the

production of many plastic pipes,

rods and tubes

• COMPRESSION MOULDING:
In this method, the mould cavity has a male and female

section. The female section contains the cavity where

the materials are formed, the pressure is achieved by

forcing the male section of the machine down into the

female section of the mould cavity, where the plastic are

formed. This is one of the methods used to produce

thermoset plastics
• Vacuum forming:
This is the method used in the processing of plastic

cups, buckets and bowls. The vacuum forming

process works by firstly, heating a plastic sheet,

followed by forming it into a shaped vacuum

forming tool using vacuum, then, cooling the

plastic sheet until it sets hard & then removing the

hardened part from the tool.

• CALENDARING:
Calendaring is the final finishing process in which

heat and pressure are applied to a material e.g.

Plastic, paper or textile by passing it between

heated rollers in order to smoothen and give it a

shinny surface.

This is the method used to produce long sheets of

plastics like nylon and polythene products.

APPLICATION AND USES OF
PLASTIC
• Automotive: bumper, dashboard, engine parts, seating and

doors

• Furniture: bedding, upholstery and household furniture

• Medical and healthcare: syringes, dialysis machines, heart

valves, artificial limbs

• Military: helmets, body armor, tanks, warships, communication

equipment

• Construction: pipes, cables, floor coverings, and insulation.

• Electrical and electronic applications: circuit breakers, switch

gear, cable & wire insulation, lighting fixtures

 RUBBER

Is an elastic material (material, which

can stretch and shrink) produced from

natural sources or synthesized from

petroleum product
Rubber tapping
Types of Rubber
(i). Natural rubber:

Natural rubber comes from a milky liquid called LATEX .

Raw natural rubber occurs as latex. The Latex is a whitish

liquid obtained from rubber tree(hevea tree)and is found

under the bark of the rubber tree.

When the tree is tapped, the latex is collected. If the latex is

heated,, it changes into an elastic soft and sticky solid which is

called rubber. Latex can be converted into crepe rubber(tightly

pressed rubber used especially for making bottom of shoes).

(ii). Synthetic (chemical/artificial) rubber:

This is an artificially made rubber. It is made of chemical

substances(raw material) derived from petroleum, coal, oil, natural

gas and acetylene. They are also called elastomer and they serve

as substitutes for natural rubber.

Today, synthetic rubber accounts for 60% of the world’s rubber

production
PROCESSING OF
RUBBER
Artificial (synthetic) rubber and natural rubber are processed

through the following stages:

Foremost, the rubber is softened by adding chemicals and

mixing it thoroughly to bring it to a mouldable state.

It is then pre-heated in a chamber into a molten form.

The molten rubber is then forced in to a mould designed to

take the shape of the article desired.

It should be noted that the methods used in the processing

of plastics, is also the same method applied in the

processing of rubber.
The following details the processing stages in rubber processing:

(1) Compounding: rubber must be treated first. The whitish liquid is first

treated with formic acid and turned into a coagulate. The coagulate is

sieved and transferred into an airtight coagulating tank until the

process is completed. The completed process is then dried and aired by

adding additives. It is this additives that harden

(2) mixing: The additives must be thoroughly mixed into

the rubber. Rubber at temperature of 300 degree

Fahrenheit. When cooled the chemicals for vulcanization

are added and mixed into the rubber.

(3)SHAPING: This hardened rubber is

then processed by injection or

compression moulding method for

shaping . This shaping method is used in

plastic processing.
(4) Vulcanisation: Vulcanization completes the rubber-production

process.. This a special chemical treatment where sulphur is

added to the raw rubber and heated at high temperature. This

process makes the rubber harder, more elastic, durable and able

to withstand high temperature. Without vulcanization, rubber

would remain sticky when hot and brittle when cold, and it

would rot much more quickly.

USES OF RUBBER
• Tyres • Engine belts

• Soles for shoes • Shock absorbers

• Foamed rubber products • Conveyor belts

• Sports equipment • Hose

• Footwear
• Seals
 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF THE
PROCESSING METHODS
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF COMPRESSION MOULDING
METHOD
Advantages Disadvantages

Good for small scale Not suitable for complex

production mould.

Lower cost Tooling Greater waste

Good for large parts High labour cost

No gates, sprues or runners Slower process times.

 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF INJECTION
MOULDING METHOD

Advantages Disadvantages

Low scrap rates. High tooling costs and long set up

lead times

Fast production and highly Small runs of parts can be costly.

efficient.

Low labour costs

Fast production and highly

efficient.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Extrusion Moulding
Method
Advantages Disadvantages

Low Cost per part Size Variances.

Flexibility of operation Expansion:Once the hot plastic is removed from

the extruder it will many times expand

High production volumes. Product limitation

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF VACUUM
FORMING
Advantages Disadvantages
Versatile and customizable mould Designs have to be relatively simple,
shapes and sizes as there’s a limit to how much detail
you can achieve from a mould
Excess plastic can be recycled into Excess moisture can cause unwanted
more sheets for future production bubbles to form
needs
Versatile and customizable mould Designs have to be relatively simple,
shapes and sizes as there’s a limit to how much detail
you can achieve from a mould
 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PLASTIC AND RUBBER
Plastic Rubber

1 Less Elastic in nature Elastic in nature

2 It is non-deformable. It is deformable.

3 it is defined as organic materials which It is defined as an organic material

have a polymeric structure, and are which is derived from the sap or the

derived from oil or petroleum. latex of the rubber trees.

Therefore it a by-product It is a natural product

EVALUATION
 State at least two differences between plastics and rubber
 Describe the methods of processing plastics and rubber
 List at least three advantages and disadvantages of each

methods

 State at least three uses of plastics and rubber

THANK YOU FOR
WATCHING!!