Following is not the process involved in the fabrication of articles of plastic:
🔬 Understanding Plastic Fabrication
Plastic fabrication refers to the various industrial processes used to convert raw plastic material (in the form of pellets, powder, or resin) into a finished, usable product. The question asks to identify the term that is NOT a plastic fabrication process.
⚖️ Detailed Analysis of the Processes
Let's examine each term to determine if it applies to plastics.
(a) Laminating
Is it a plastic process? YES. Laminating involves bonding together multiple layers of material. This is very common with plastics, such as creating decorative laminates for countertops (e.g., Formica), or producing multi-layer plastic films for packaging.
(b) Blowing (Blow Molding)
Is it a plastic process? YES. This is a major industrial process used to create hollow plastic parts. A tube of hot plastic (a parison) is placed in a mold and inflated with compressed air, forcing it to take the shape of the mold. This is how most plastic bottles and containers are made.
(c) Calendaring
Is it a plastic process? YES. Calendaring is a process where a mass of hot, soft plastic is passed through a series of large, heated rollers to squeeze it into a continuous, thin sheet or film. This method is used to make products like vinyl flooring, shower curtains, and flexible PVC sheets.
(d) Tempering
Is it a plastic process? NO. Tempering is a specific heat treatment process that is almost exclusively associated with glass and steel.
• In glass, it involves heating and then rapidly cooling the surface to create high compressive stresses, which makes the glass much stronger and safer (it shatters into small, blunt pieces).
• In steel, it involves reheating a hardened piece to a specific temperature to reduce its brittleness and increase its toughness.
This process is not used in the fabrication of plastics.
💡 Study Tips for Fabrication Processes
- Tempering = Glass and Steel: This is the most important association to remember. Think of "tempered glass" on your phone or a "tempered steel" knife blade.
- Blowing Blows up Bottles: A simple way to remember the purpose of blow molding.
- Calendaring creates a "Calendar" (Sheets): Use this mnemonic to link the process name to its output: sheets and films.
- Laminating adds Layers: The name itself describes the process of creating layers.