Assembly Line

Chemical reaction

Molecules are combined or broken apart in a reactor, usually with heat, pressure and a catalyst, to create a substance that was not there before.

142 lines that use it

ABS plastic 6 stations · 9 raw sources Acetaminophen 6 stations · 5 raw sources Acetic anhydride 5 stations · 2 raw sources Acetone 5 stations · 5 raw sources Acrylic 5 stations · 5 raw sources Acrylic acid 6 stations · 4 raw sources Adhesive 8 stations · 7 raw sources Alumina 6 stations · 4 raw sources Ammonia 6 stations · 3 raw sources Aspirin 7 stations · 12 raw sources Bacon 7 stations · 7 raw sources Baking soda 6 stations · 9 raw sources Benzene 5 stations · 4 raw sources Billiard ball 9 stations · 21 raw sources Biodiesel 5 stations · 6 raw sources Black tea 7 stations · 1 raw source Bleach 7 stations · 10 raw sources Bottled water 6 stations · 8 raw sources Caffeine 7 stations · 7 raw sources Carbon black 5 stations · 3 raw sources Carbon dioxide 5 stations · 6 raw sources Carbon fiber 6 stations · 4 raw sources Carbon monoxide 6 stations · 2 raw sources Cellulose acetate 6 stations · 8 raw sources Cement 7 stations · 3 raw sources Cheese 7 stations · 3 raw sources Chromium 6 stations · 13 raw sources Cobalt 6 stations · 9 raw sources Cobalt ore 3 stations Cocoa powder 7 stations · 1 raw source Contact lens 6 stations · 9 raw sources Corn starch 6 stations · 2 raw sources Corn syrup 6 stations · 2 raw sources Deodorant 7 stations · 23 raw sources Diesel fuel 5 stations · 6 raw sources Drywall 7 stations · 8 raw sources Energy drink 7 stations · 19 raw sources Epoxy 6 stations · 7 raw sources Ethanol 6 stations · 6 raw sources Ethylene 5 stations · 3 raw sources Ethylene glycol 6 stations · 8 raw sources Fertilizer 7 stations · 10 raw sources Formaldehyde 5 stations · 3 raw sources Gallium 5 stations · 4 raw sources Gasoline 6 stations · 6 raw sources Gelatin 7 stations · 4 raw sources Germanium 5 stations · 6 raw sources Glass bottle 8 stations · 11 raw sources Glycerin 6 stations · 8 raw sources Gold 6 stations · 7 raw sources Hair dye 5 stations · 12 raw sources Hexane 5 stations · 3 raw sources Hydrochloric acid 5 stations · 5 raw sources Hydrogen 6 stations · 2 raw sources Hydrogen peroxide 6 stations · 3 raw sources Ibuprofen 5 stations · 2 raw sources Indigo 3 stations Indium 5 stations · 4 raw sources Insect repellent 5 stations · 17 raw sources Insulin 7 stations · 11 raw sources Iridium 6 stations · 8 raw sources Jet fuel 6 stations · 3 raw sources Kevlar 6 stations · 6 raw sources Kitchen sponge 7 stations · 13 raw sources Laundry detergent 7 stations · 18 raw sources Leather 6 stations · 14 raw sources Leggings 8 stations · 11 raw sources Light beer 6 stations · 19 raw sources Lithium carbonate 8 stations · 12 raw sources Manganese 6 stations · 7 raw sources Margarine 7 stations · 9 raw sources Melamine resin 6 stations · 7 raw sources Mercury 5 stations · 2 raw sources Methanol 5 stations · 2 raw sources Motor oil 5 stations · 3 raw sources mRNA vaccine 7 stations · 11 raw sources Nail polish 6 stations · 17 raw sources Naphtha 5 stations · 3 raw sources Nitric acid 5 stations · 3 raw sources Nylon 6 stations · 5 raw sources Oat milk 8 stations · 9 raw sources Optical fiber 6 stations · 12 raw sources Para-xylene 5 stations · 3 raw sources Paraffin wax 6 stations · 3 raw sources Penicillin 7 stations · 11 raw sources Pentane 5 stations · 2 raw sources PET plastic 6 stations · 8 raw sources Petroleum coke 6 stations · 1 raw source Phenol 5 stations · 5 raw sources Phenolic resin 5 stations · 5 raw sources Phosphoric acid 5 stations · 6 raw sources Photoresist 6 stations · 5 raw sources Pig iron 6 stations · 4 raw sources Pigment 8 stations · 8 raw sources Plaster of Paris 5 stations · 1 raw source Plastic 5 stations · 3 raw sources Plasticizer 5 stations · 4 raw sources Platinum 6 stations · 6 raw sources Polycarbonate 5 stations · 7 raw sources Polyethylene 6 stations · 3 raw sources Polypropylene 5 stations · 3 raw sources Polysilicon 5 stations · 8 raw sources Polystyrene 6 stations · 4 raw sources Polyurethane 6 stations · 6 raw sources Polyvinyl alcohol 5 stations · 5 raw sources Polyvinyl butyral 6 stations · 5 raw sources Polyvinylpyrrolidone 8 stations · 3 raw sources Propylene 5 stations · 3 raw sources PTFE 5 stations · 6 raw sources PVC 6 stations · 9 raw sources Quicklime 6 stations · 2 raw sources Rayon 6 stations · 7 raw sources Refrigerant 6 stations · 11 raw sources Root beer 5 stations · 19 raw sources Shampoo 8 stations · 20 raw sources Silicone 6 stations · 9 raw sources Smartphone cover glass 5 stations · 12 raw sources Soap 8 stations · 19 raw sources Soda 5 stations · 22 raw sources Soda ash 8 stations · 9 raw sources Solar cell 5 stations · 15 raw sources Spandex 6 stations · 11 raw sources Steel 6 stations · 12 raw sources Styrene 5 stations · 4 raw sources Sulfuric acid 6 stations · 3 raw sources Sunscreen 8 stations · 17 raw sources Super glue 6 stations · 7 raw sources Superabsorbent polymer 6 stations · 5 raw sources Synthetic rubber 6 stations · 4 raw sources Titanium 5 stations · 9 raw sources Titanium dioxide 6 stations · 6 raw sources Tofu 7 stations · 3 raw sources Toluene 5 stations · 4 raw sources Tonic water 5 stations · 19 raw sources Trichlorosilane 5 stations · 8 raw sources Tungsten 6 stations · 3 raw sources Tungsten carbide 5 stations · 11 raw sources Vanadium 6 stations · 14 raw sources Vitamin C tablet 7 stations · 8 raw sources Wood pulp 6 stations · 6 raw sources Zinc 6 stations · 4 raw sources Zinc oxide 5 stations · 4 raw sources

What it looks like on the line

  • Pig ironBlast in hot air. Pipes called tuyeres blow preheated air, sometimes enriched with oxygen, into the lower furnace. The air burns the coke and makes hot carbon monoxide, which is the real worker in the process.
  • PigmentReact iron into reds. The Laux and Penniman processes together meet more than 90% of demand for synthetic red iron oxide. Laux oxidizes iron with aromatic nitro compounds and forms its reds by calcining. Penniman can give very bright reds with a yellow undertone.
  • Bottled waterDisinfect with ozone. Bottlers of all types of water typically dissolve ozone gas into it to kill microbes. It has played this role in the industry since the 1970s, and it leaves none of the taste and odor that chlorine does.
  • SoapCook with lye. The warm fat meets a solution of caustic soda in a large vessel. This reaction, called saponification, breaks each fat molecule into fatty acid salts and glycerin. The salts are the soap.
  • AcetaminophenAdd the acetyl group. The 4-aminophenol solution enters a second reactor with acetic anhydride and is heated. This acetylation completes the molecule and yields the crude drug.
  • MargarineHarden some of the oil. Part of the oil may be hardened by passing hydrogen through it over a nickel catalyst. This turns carbon double bonds into single ones and raises the melting point. Many brands now rely on fractionation and interesterification to avoid hydrogenation.
  • PlatinumDrop out gold, then platinum. Iron(II) chloride precipitates the gold, which is filtered off. Ammonium chloride is then added to the filtrate, and platinum comes out as ammonium chloroplatinate.
  • mRNA vaccineCap and tail the strand. The RNA gets a protective cap on one end and a tail on the other so cells will read it and it will last long enough to work.
  • Tonic waterCarbonate the blend. Carbon dioxide is dissolved into the water under pressure, and the syrup is blended in.
  • TitaniumChlorinate the ore. Chlorine gas is passed over a red-hot mix of rutile or ilmenite and carbon. The titanium comes out combined with chlorine as titanium tetrachloride, a colorless volatile liquid. Heating the ore with carbon alone would produce titanium carbide.
  • Cellulose acetatePartly undo the reaction. Controlled hydrolysis takes off the sulfate and some of the acetate. The common form ends up with an acetate on about two of every three hydroxyls. George Miles found around 1903 that this makes it soluble in cheap solvents.
  • PhotoresistPrepare the resin. Resists for g-line and i-line lithography use novolak, a resin made by condensing phenols or cresols with formaldehyde. Far-ultraviolet resists use polymers with groups that an acid can cleave off.