Silicone is a polymer used to prepare various final products in different industries. Till now, we have learnt about the uses of silicone in these industries. It is time; we will explore the way where we will dig deep to know about the production of silicone.
You must have come across the word “Silicon”. You will wonder, that it is silicone and not silicon but there is a difference between the two words. Not even a difference, there is a connection between these two words.
Silicon is a single chemical element. The combination of more than one polymer together leads to the formation of silicone. It encompasses the bonding of siloxane. Its chemical formula is like this (-si-o-si). It is a compound of organic components.
Invention of Silicones
The tiniest part of machinery in the production process is depending on this silicone. It is a substance that is available in powder, gel or semi-liquid form. Silicone oil, silicone rubber, adhesive, silicone resins, silicone caulk are some of the common forms of silicone products.
In the 18th century, several efforts were started to give a better working to machinery. Due to the industrial revolution, the demand was raised to have a substance that can improve the working of machinery.
Franklin Hyde is considered to be the father of silicones. He was a chemist who invented a sticky substance that was later used as an industrial product.
This substance was introduced again in 1901 by F.S. Kipping with the support of the formula of (dimethyldichlorosilane). He used the polymerized properties present in silicone and gifted the world a discovery that could change the face of the industries.
Availability and the process of silicon compound:
- Silicon compound is available from silicone quartz sand. Silicon is extracted by heating it at 1800 C. once it is cooled down, it is converted into a fine powder by crushing it.
- Once a step of silicon extraction is done, the next step is to make a silicone compound by mixing them with various chemicals.
- The silicon compound is mixed with methyl chloride and heated again. The heat given to the mixture allows the chemicals to undergo a chemical reaction. It results in the formation of methyl chlorosilane. It has consisted of various elements and mainly it is structured with the combination of dimethyldichlorosilane.
- Heating this compound is a complex method because various components of this compound have different boiling points. Taking out methyl and chlorosilane is a process that involves heating these components up to a series of different boiling points. The elements are distilled and silicone is available in combination with various polymers.
- After distillation, disilanol and hydrochloric acid are separated from the compound after adding water into it. Disilanol needs to be condensed to obtain polydimethylsiloxane. Extracted hydrochloric acid acts as a catalyst in the process.
- Polydimethylsiloxane contains the elements of siloxane. This element plays a very crucial role in building a bond of silicone.
- In the final stage, this silicone is polymerized to have a process to use this silicone in the making of final end product.
Use of Silicone in the production of end products:
We have seen in our earlier articles that silicone is used in various industries.it performs the task of oxygen for many industries like automotive, aerospace, building constructions, coating, cookware, defoaming, dry cleaning, electronics, firestop, lubricants, medicines, cosmetics, surgical items, personal care, toys and hobbies, mould making and many more.
- Automotive: Silicone is heat–resistant and water- repellent so it can be used largely in the automotive industry as a lubricant for brake components. Spark plug wires are coated and given insulation by layering with silicone.
- Aerospace: Silicone has got sealing characteristics, it is stable even at high temperatures. Its durability, sound dampening and vibration qualities make it the most demanded product in the aerospace industry.
- Building construction: Another form of silicone, that is silicone rubber which is widely used in the construction industry. Silicone sealants and caulks are used to seal joints in buildings. It is used in the external fixing of glasses. It is also used in the curtain walls of the houses.
There are many such industries as mentioned above, which are widely dependent on silicone for the production process of their end products.
Take away
In this article, we learnt about the various steps involved in the process of making silicone polymers out of silicon quartz. It is a complex method and involves the system of using a series of different boiling points. The compound gets decentralized only if the elements get boiling points in accordance with their heating capacity.
We hope that this piece of the write up must have given the required details about the process of silicone production. Our readers’ suggestions are always welcomed and we always try to serve them better with our best work. Give your valuable feedback in the suggestion box right here. Keep on reading and keep on exploring with us.