What are e-readers made of?
E-readers take 9 things directly, among them titanium dioxide, adhesive, plastic, glass, printed circuit board and microchip. Trace them back and you pass 71 made things on the way to 30 raw materials.
How e-readers are made See it on the map
What goes straight in
- Titanium dioxideat Fill the capsules
- Adhesiveat Coat the film
- Plasticat Coat the film
- Glassat Build the transistor grid
- Printed circuit boardat Assemble the electronics
- Microchipat Assemble the electronics
- Lithium-ion cellat Assemble the electronics
- LEDat Assemble the electronics
- ABS plasticat Seal in the case
From the ground: 30 raw materials
- Titanium ore through titanium dioxide
- Water through adhesive
- Natural gas through plastic
- Silica sand through glass
- Limestone through glass
- Air through ABS plastic
- Rock salt through titanium dioxide, chlorine
- Coal through titanium dioxide, coke
- Sulfur through titanium dioxide, sulfuric acid
- Crude oil through adhesive, paraffin wax
- Trona through glass, soda ash
- Copper ore through lithium-ion cell, copper
- Quartz through microchip, silicon wafer
- Tin ore through microchip, tin
- Gold ore through LED, gold
- Lithium brine through lithium-ion cell, lithium carbonate
- Spodumene through lithium-ion cell, lithium carbonate
- Cobalt ore through lithium-ion cell, cobalt
- Nickel ore through lithium-ion cell, nickel
- Manganese ore through lithium-ion cell, manganese
- Iron ore through lithium-ion cell, manganese
- Bauxite through LED, gallium
- Zinc ore through LED, indium
- Corn through glass, soda ash, carbon dioxide
- Lead ore through printed circuit board, solder, silver
- Silver ore through printed circuit board, solder, silver
- Dolomite through lithium-ion cell, steel, magnesium
- Timber through lithium-ion cell, steel, magnesium, metallurgical silicon
- Sugarcane through glass, soda ash, carbon dioxide, baker's yeast, molasses
- Sugar beet through glass, soda ash, carbon dioxide, baker's yeast, molasses
Made along the way: 62 things
Metals 17
CokeCopperSolderTinAluminumGoldCobaltNickelManganeseSteelLeadSilverAluminaZincPig ironMagnesiumSteel scrap
Chemicals and fuels 29
ChlorineOxygen gasSulfuric acidParaffin waxNaphthaEthylenePropyleneSoda ashSynthetic graphiteAmmoniaHydrogenBenzeneStyrenePigmentMethanolPhenolAcetoneCaustic sodaNitric acidCarbon dioxideQuicklimeArgonPetroleum cokeTolueneCarbon blackFormaldehydeHydrochloric acidPropaneCharcoal
Plastics and fibers 6
Electronics 8
PhotoresistSilicon waferLithium carbonateGalliumIndiumPolysiliconMetallurgical siliconTrichlorosilane