16x03 - Cast Iron Cookware, Biodiesel, Clothes Hangers, Stone Wool Insulation

[bunniefuu]

Narrator:
cast-iron cookware is renowned

For its superior ability

To retain heat
and diffuse it evenly.

Bare cast iron, however,

Requires regular oiling
to ward off rust --

Not so with enameled cast iron.

A glass-enamel coating
encases the iron,

Making the cookware entirely
maintenance-free, forever.

Since 1925, this french company

Has been producing
enameled cast-iron cookware.

Its high-end products are
renowned for their thin walls,

Which makes it the most
lightweight cast-iron
cookware available.

The secret -- the mineral levels
in the iron recipe.

At the foundry,
they begin with pig iron,

Which has high carbon content.

Then they melt
in a calculated amount of steel

To further boost
the carbon level.

The melting oven heats the
metals to 1,520 degrees celsius,

Liquefying them
in just 45 minutes.

Workers add a powdered chemical

To agglomerate the natural
impurities in the iron,

Then scoop
those bonded impurities out.

Meanwhile, workers mount
a two-part mold template

Onto a machine which produces
the sand molds

With which they'll cast
the cookware.

The machine injects the sand mix
into the templates.

The mix contains clay, water,
and proprietary ingredients

Which makes
the sand compact well.

Compaction is critical

Because just one single grain
of sand displacing from the mold

Would produce a flaw
on the cookware.

It's essential
that the pouring temperature

Be precise and consistent,

So they transfer the iron
from the melting oven

To a temperature-maintenance
oven.

From there,
they pour the molten metal

Through a mere 1/10th-of-an-inch
gap between the mold halves.

The process
is entirely automated

Because the pouring angle
and speed are critical.

The molten iron cools
and solidifies in 20 minutes.

Then the molds drop
onto a vibrating mesh conveyor.

The shaking releases
the cast cookware from the mold,

Along with the metal that
solidified in the flow channels

Leading to the mold cavity.

The cookware moves
into a closed chamber

Where a high-pressure g*n blasts
the surface with steel ba*ls

To remove all remaining grains
of sand.

At this stage, the cookware
has rough excess metal

Where the two parts
of the mold met.

So now workers
smooth away these burrs

Using a grinding wheel
on the outside...

...and a grinding pin
in the tight spots.

The cookware is now ready
to be prepped for enameling.

A machine now blasts the entire
piece with steel grits,

Making the surface texture
uniform

So the enamel
will adhere evenly.

The first coat of enamel

Is strictly to protect
the cast iron

And prevent it from rusting.

Enamel is a form of glass.

However, this enamel is
engineered to be flexible

Because metal cookware
naturally expands as it heats

And contracts as it cools.

After a trip through a dryer,

The enamel goes into an oven

At more
than 1,500 degrees fahrenheit

For about 45 minutes.

During this firing,

The hair-thin enamel coating
becomes translucent.

The second coat of enamel

Completely seals
the porous surface.

It's made of some 20 components,

Including enamel chips,
pieces of clear glass,

And pigment powders for color.

An automated spray system
coats the inside first.

Workers wipe the edge

To prevent the piece
from sticking to the conveyor,

Then the handle

Because they'll paint that
a different color.

They spray the handle manually,

Then the automated system coats
the rest.

The iron recipe contains a high
level of the mineral silicate,

Which helps the enamel
adhere well.

Once again, the cookware
goes through the dryer,

Then into the oven at more
than 1,500 degrees fahrenheit

For about 45 minutes
to vitrify the enamel.

Once the cookware cools,

It undergoes
a final visual inspection,

The last of 30
quality-control checks

Throughout
the production process.

Enameled cast-iron cookware
lasts for generations

Because it doesn't warp
over time

And remains food-safe for life.

Narrator: biodiesel is
a more eco-friendly diesel fuel

That's made from vegetable oil
or animal fat.

Unlike regular diesel
and gasoline,

Producing biodiesel
doesn't require petroleum.

Instead, the raw materials
are locally available

And can be recycled from waste.

If your car has a diesel engine,
it can run on biodiesel fuel,

Usually without requiring
any modifications.

While biodiesel
and petroleum diesel

Are similar in energy efficiency
and fuel economy,

Biodiesel is more eco-friendly.

For starters, it can be made

From what would otherwise
have been waste --

For example, from vegetable oil

From the kitchen
of your local fast-food joint.

The restaurant simply discards
its used fryer oil

In a receptacle out back.

Every few days, a vacuum truck
comes by to collect it.

In its current state,

The oil contains water
and food particles,

Making it unusable
for biodiesel production,

So the truck transports it
to a filtering plant.

There, they pump the oil
into a holding tank,

Then heat it up
to draw out the water.

Once they drain the water,

The oil is ready to enter
a multi-stage filtering process.

First, the oil goes
through a vibrating sieve

Which strains out
the larger pieces of debris.

After this first filtering,

The oil is
already visibly cleaner.

Next, it passes through
a second vibrating sieve.

This one has a finer mesh.

Therefore, it catches
smaller particles of debris.

After this second stage,

The oil looks clean but still
contains microscopic debris,

So it enters the third
and final filtering stage --

Passing through


Which trap any particle
larger than one micron in size.

A micron is
about 80 times smaller

Than the width
of a human hair.

The captured debris leaves
a muddy residue on the filters.

That vegetable oil,
which once deep-fried potatoes,

Is now ready to cook up
some diesel fuel.

Another source of oil
for making biodiesel

Is beef tallow --
oil derived from cow fat.

Biodiesel producers
typically buy tallow

From facilities like this one,
which specialize

In cleaning cow hides
for leather tanneries.

Sharp, revolving blades

Shear off the fat
from the back of the hide.

The fat drops onto a conveyor,

Which moves it into
a steam-injection cook tank.

The tank heats the fat
to a gentle boil,

Extracting the oil.

Everything else leaves the tank

And drops
into a waste container.

The oil moves onward,

Passing through
a two-stage filtration process.

Whether the raw material is
vegetable oil or beef tallow,

The biodiesel producers

Refer to this main ingredient
as feedstock.

When the feedstock arrives
at the biodiesel plant,

It goes into a holding tank
until production time.

This demonstration illustrates
the production recipe.

They take the feedstock

And combine it with methanol,
a type of wood alcohol,

As well as with a catalyst,

Which triggers
a chemical reaction.

A processing unit
mixes everything thoroughly

While applying
heat and pressure.

The resulting chemical reaction
produces a harmless byproduct,

Glycerin, a common ingredient
in soaps and cosmetics.

Processing consumes
much of the methanol.

Then they remove even more,

Leaving just
a tiny percentage of it

In the finished biodiesel.

To ensure their fuel meets

International
regulatory standards,

The plant's
quality-control lab samples

From each production run.

In this flammability test,

They heat the fuel
to 275 degrees fahrenheit,

Then apply a flame to see
whether the gases ignite.

If they do, they have
to remove more methanol

To make the fuel safe.

If they don't ignite,

The fuel meets
international safety standards.

Biodiesel costs more
at the pump,

But emits significantly less
carbon dioxide and monoxide

And 85% fewer
cancer-causing agents

Into the air we breathe.

Narrator:
until the mid-1800s,

People folded
or laid their clothes flat

Or hung them on hooks or pegs.

Once it became more common
to store clothes in a wardrobe,

Someone -- historians
don't know exactly who --

Invented the clothes hanger,

A hanging device
shaped like human shoulders.

Since the mid 19th century,

Hundreds of inventors have
patented various shaped hangers,

Many of which are
still being produced today.

This czech company makes wooden
hangers in several styles.

It uses beech,
a hard and durable type of wood.

The damp logs air-dry outdoors
for seven months,

Then go into a kiln
for three to four weeks.

Drying the wood is critical.

Otherwise, the hangers

Would expand and contract
with temperature changes

And eventually crack.

Workers first use a band saw

To slice the logs
into 2 1/2-inch-thick planks.

Then they put each plank
through a broaching machine.

Inside, a toothed blade
planes the wood,

Rendering the top and bottom
surfaces level and smooth.

Next stop is a grinding machine
which contains abrasive belts.

Workers feed the planks
into the machine one at a time.

As each plank passes through,

The belts above it
sand the tops silky smooth.

When the plank
exits the machine,

Workers flip and refeed it
to smooth the other side.

An automated saw cuts
each plank in half...

...and trims the halves
to a specific dimension.

The now-smaller planks go
into another grinding machine

Which sands the sides smooth.

Now the hanger shaping begins.

Workers stack 10 planks

And, using a circular saw,
cut them to the same length,

The ends at a 60-degree angle.

They mount four planks at a time
on a milling machine

And cut a tongue-and-groove
profile on the edges.

They'll later connect
the hanger parts

By fitting the tongues
into the grooves.

Stacking six planks now,

They trace a hanger-shaped
template on the top surface,

Then carefully follow
the trace line with a jigsaw.

Each plank is now roughly shaped
into a half a hanger,

Which they call a lamella.

This particular hanger
is designed for dresses,

So they mill a groove
in the shoulder of each lamella

For garment straps.

Then an automated
milling machine

Refines and finalizes
the hanger's shape,

Smoothing the roughly cut wood
in the process.

Next, with strong
cabinetmaker's glue,

They coat the tongues
and grooves of two lamellas,

Then fit them together
on a press.

They let the glue dry
for a day,

Then saw the point off the top.

This creates a flat area

Into which to insert
the hanger's hook.

There's already a hole
for it there,

Made when they milled
the tongue-and-groove profile.

Next, they sand the joint
to remove excess glue

And smooth out any nicks
or tears in the wood.

Then they round
the angular joint.

To seal and protect the wood,

They now spray
the entire surface with varnish.

When it dries,
they do a rough sanding,

Then apply a second coat
and let that dry.

Many customers want their logo

Printed on the hangers
they order.

The printing machine

Coats a logo-embossed rubber pad
with ink.

A sponge dabs the pad,

Then stamps the logo
onto the hanger.

Finally,
the hanger's iron hook --

It's either nickel-plated
for a silver tone

Or brass-plated
for a gold tone.

Workers position the hook.

Then a press rams it
into the wood



The hook has screwlike threads
at the base

Which grab and lock
into the surrounding wood.

For certain models,

The factory stains or paints
the wood prior to varnishing it.

After all, many people
like their clothes hangers

To make
a fashion statement, too.

Narrator:
an erupting volcano

Led to the invention
of stone wool insulation

A century and a half ago.

It was observed
that volcanic lava

Could be whipped into woolly
tufts by prevailing winds.

Soon, this was being replicated
in factories

To produce stone wool
for insulation.

Shaped into batts,

Stone wool insulation
can be tucked snugly

Between the studs
of a framed wall.

It acts as both a thermal
and acoustic insulator.

And here's
the soundproofing proof.

In this demonstration,

An activated alarm goes into
a box lined with stone wool.

When the lid is closed,
the sound is contained.

And when it's lifted again,
the annoying sound is back.

They make stone wool
from basalt rock and slag

Recycled
from the steel industry.

The process is fueled by coke,
which is a form of coal.

Basalt rock
is solidified lava formed

When rock melts underground
and then quickly cools.

After the rock has been
partially crushed at the quarry,

A loader scoops it onto a screen

To separate the bigger pieces
from the fine particles.

The particles will be processed
into briquettes,

Which can be used
in the production of stone wool,

Along with the bigger pieces
of rock.

The rock and briquettes,
along with the steel slag,

Melt into lava in a furnace.

Temperatures reach


As hot as a volcano.

A spinning machine
whips the lava

Into thin stands of stone wool

In a process
that's like making cotton candy.

The strands form tufts,

And a little binding solution
holds them together.

A spray of oil
adds water repellence.

Now a fleecy web,

The stone wool rides a conveyor
to the factory's upper level,

Where it spills
into a huge pendulum device.

The pendulum swings to and fro

To layer the stone wool
in a zigzag pattern.

The number of layers varies,

Depending on the kind
of insulation being made.

The now-layered stone wool

Travels between rollers
that compress it substantially,

Adding density to the wool.

Automated pushers
tuck in the pack on each side

As the wool enters a long oven.

The heat cures the binder
applied earlier,

Allowing the compressed fibers
to hold their shape.

The now-tighter pack
exits through a cooling zone

And travels under a roller

Which squeezes it to make
the fibers more flexible.

Circular blades then slice

The moving mass of stone wool
lengthwise.

A branding tool burns
the r-value and company name

Onto the surface of the
insulation as it moves forward.

Robotic arms
swing back and forth

To slice the insulation
to its final dimensions.

Instead of sharp, steel blades,

These robots use high-pressure
water jets to make their cuts.

The jets do a precise job

Without generating dust
or waste,

And the stone wool doesn't
absorb the water from the jets.

The sheer density of the wool
makes it moisture-resistant,

Along with the oil added
to the fibers during spinning.

To demonstrate stone wool's
water-repellent qualities,

They pour water
directly onto the surface.

There's no absorption.
The water just runs off.

In this routine test,

A worker torches the wool,
and it doesn't catch fire.

Stone wool
can withstand temperatures

Of almost 2,200 degrees
fahrenheit

Due to its natural properties.

It's even cool to the touch
on the other side.

Once it's passed
several quality-control tests,

The insulation heads
for the packaging line.

Grippers pull on a roll
of plastic tube packaging,

And hot jaws cut and seal
one end to form an open bag.

Mechanical fingers hold
the other end open

As machinery slides it
over a metal spout.

A compressed stack of insulation
is pushed into the spout.

The spout expands,

And the insulation is released
into the bag.

The spout then retracts,
and the process is repeated.

Machinery heat-seals
the open end.

From a pile of basalt rock
and recycled steel slag

To a bag full of insulation,

It's been
a wild and woolly ride.

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