02x11 - Aluminium Pots and Pans/Artificial Limbs/Peanut Butter/High Intensity Light Bu...

[bunniefuu]

Narrator:
today on "how it's made"...

Aluminum pots and pans,
artificial limbs,

Peanut butter,
and high-intensity light bulbs.

There are several different ways

To manufacture
aluminum pots and pans.

Some factories
have giant machines

That simply stamp out
or mold the cookware,

While other factories

Use a technique
called metal spinning.

To make cookware
that's safe for food use,

The aluminum must be pure --
no other metals mixed in.

It all starts with a round
aluminum sheet called a blank.

They stamp the pot size
and the company name

On what will be
the bottom of the pot.

They clamp it onto a lathe,

Centered against
what's called the chuck --

A metal mold shaped
like the inside of the pot

They're going to spin.

The lathe spins at


Guided by computer software,
the spinning tool --

A round wheel
made of special plastic --

Pushes against the chuck,

Stretching and shaping
the aluminum blank

Much the way potters stretch
and shape clay

Against their hand
on a pottery wheel...

Except that metal spinning
works sideways,

Not up and down like pottery.

The machine trims off excess
aluminum as it rounds the edges.

The factory has no use for these
very sharp metal leftovers,

But it doesn't throw them out.

Aluminum is difficult to mine
and, therefore, very expensive,

So scrap aluminum is sent off to
be recycled into other products.

After the final trim
to the finished size,

Another trimmer moves in to take
the sharpness off the edge.

It's taken 4 minutes
to spin this 8 1/2-gallon pot.

Now it comes off the lathe.

They punch out handle holes...

...then rivet on
aluminum handles.

The pot is now finished.

Items that aren't as large and
heavy are spun on a hand lathe.

This is where you need
an experienced metal spinner

Because this trade
isn't a mechanical science.

You've got to have
a feel for it.

Besides cookware,

Many other aluminum products
are spun on a lathe.

This is a light reflector --

That round aluminum fixture
that covers light bulbs

In factories, stores,
and arenas.

When working the hand lathe,

The metal spinner uses
what's called a scissor tool.

It's the equivalent
of the plastic wheel

On the automated lathe.

As the blank spins, he moves his
tool further and further down

To stretch the aluminum
into the right shape.

This is a sausage funnel.

And this will be
the inside tube of a cake pan.

He makes the body of the cake
pan on a different lathe

Using a variety of tools
to get a variety of effects.

This beading tool
creates an edge, for example.

Almost all metals can be spun,

Though some are better suited
for the technique than others.

Aluminum and steel
are very formable metals,

So they provide
the best results.

Narrator:
can a baking ingredient be
the answer to global warming?

Researchers have found a way to
transform harmful carbon dioxide

Into harmless sodium
bicarbonate, or baking soda.

They mix co2 with water

Then force it
through plastic ba*ls

Treated with an enzyme
from alfalfa.

Today's artificial limbs
are a far cry

From the wooden leg
of yesteryear.

They look very realistic.

And thanks to advances
in prosthetic technology,

Artificial limbs function more
and more like the real thing.

They start by measuring
the amputee's stump --

What doctors call
the residual limb.

First,
they measure the circumference

At different points...

Then the diameter
at different points.

They protect
and lubricate the residual limb

By coating it
in petroleum jelly.

Then they immerse it in algin,

A gelatinlike substance
that comes from algae.

After about 5 minutes,
they remove the residual limb.

The algin has already
begun to stiffen

And maintain the limb's shape.

A couple of hours later,

It's stiff enough
to be used as a negative mold.

They pour in plaster of paris
then insert a metal rod.

The rod is what
will later allow them

To mount the dried plaster
to work on it further.

The plaster takes about
an hour and a half to harden.

They cut off the algin.

Then, using sandpaper and files,

They refine and smooth
the surface.

This plaster copy
of the residual limb

Will now be used
as a positive mold

To cast the artificial limb.

Sometimes they use
a different technique

To make the positive mold.

They build a negative mold

Using strips
of plasterized cloth,

Much the same way
they make a plaster cast

When you break your leg.

Then a scanner takes
a detailed 3-dimensional reading

And programs it into a computer.

A technician then makes
any necessary modifications.

They put a plaster block
on a cutting machine.

The computer guides the blade
to carve out the positive mold.

With either technique,
once the positive mold is ready,

They can make
the artificial limb.

The process they use
is called lamination.

First, they cover the mold
in fabric socks --

Some made of nylon,

Others of a material
that contains fiberglass.

They layer 6 to 10 socks in all,

Depending on how rigid they
want the artificial limb to be.

Then they coat the socks

With a liquid resin made
of either polyester or acrylic.

Here they're using acrylic

Tinted to look like
caucasian skin.

It's important to ensure
the surface is evenly soaked.

It's a meticulous process
that takes about an hour.

The acrylic solidifies
in about an hour.

Polyester takes about 12 hours.

They then break
the plaster mold inside,

Leaving a durable plastic shell
called a socket.

That will be the basis
of the artificial limb.

The socket connects
to another plastic shell

Containing the mechanics,

Or, like this artificial leg,
the mechanism can be modular

And covered in
just a skin-colored foam.

If the muscle
at the site of the amputation

Still emits a good electrical
signal when contracted,

The patient can get
a myoelectric prosthesis.

It has an electrode

That captures
and amplifies the signal,

Triggering the artificial hand
to open and close.

Narrator: as early as the 1400s,
africans made peanut stews.

Peanut butter,
as we know it today,

Was invented in 1890
by an american doctor.

He used it
as a protein substitute

For people whose teeth were
so bad they couldn't chew meat.

The best peanuts
for making peanut butter

Are runner peanuts.

Because they're uniform in size,

They roast more evenly
than peanuts that vary in size.

They arrive at the peanut-butter
factory already shelled.

To make an 18-ounce jar
of peanut butter,

It takes 20 ounces of peanuts.

That's about 1,100 peanuts.

The first step is to roast them.

The nuts travel through
a hot-air roaster

Heated to 399 degrees
fahrenheit.

The shaking motion moves them
around so they roast evenly.

Almost 4 tons of peanuts go
through this roaster per hour.

When they come out,

They've turned from white
to light brown.

Next,
they go into another machine,

Which fast-cools them
at room temperature

Using suction fans
that circulate air quickly.

This rapid-cooling process
is critical.

It halts the cooking

And prevents the peanuts
from losing too much oil.

Next, the peanuts go through
a machine called the blancher.

It removes the outer skins

By rubbing them
between rubber belts.

Then it splits the kernels and
removes the heart of the peanut,

Which has
a slightly bitter taste.

But what's discarded
doesn't go to waste.

The skins go to farmers
for pig feed,

And the hearts
go into bird feed.

The peanuts land in
a big stainless-steel hopper.

From there,
they drop down into the grinder

To be ground into a paste.

At this point,
the other ingredients go in --

Salt, sugar or another
natural sweetener,

And a small amount
of hydrogenated vegetable oil,

Which acts as a stabilizer
to keep the peanut oil

From separating and floating
to the top of the jar.

Peanut butter
contains no artificial coloring

Or artificial sweeteners.

It has no preservatives either,

Yet doesn't
need to be refrigerated.

The peanut butter
is finally ready.

All that mixing has heated it up
to 140 degrees fahrenheit.

It goes through a cooling system
to bring it down to 100 degrees.

Now it can go into jars.

Peanut butter is a healthy,
protein-rich food

With plenty of vitamins,
minerals, and fiber.

It has no cholesterol,
but it does contain fat.

The good news is

That more than 80% of that fat
is unsaturated --

In other words,
good fat that may actually help

Lower certain cholesterol levels
in the blood.

The bad news is that the rest
of the fat content is trans fat,

Or bad fat.

It comes not
from the peanuts themselves

But from
the hydrogenated vegetable oil

That's used as the stabilizer

To keep the peanut oil
from separating.

If you want to avoid that,

You can eat
all-natural peanut butter,

Which doesn't contain
a stabilizer.

You'll just
have to stir the peanut oil

That collects
at the top of the jar.

Once the jars
are filled with peanut butter,

They go through
the capping machine.

The caps have
an aluminum seal inside.

As the caps pass through
a heat machine,

The seal drops down and adheres
to the top of the jar,

Creating an airtight seal.

A machine prints the production
date and the expiration date.

These unopened jars
of peanut butter

Will stay fresh
for one whole year.

Narrator:
a household light bulb creates
light through a metal filament.

A high-intensity
industrial light bulb

Uses not only a metal filament

But also coils, electrodes,
and mercury vapor.

It's more durable

But needs a cooldown period
before relighting.

In 1809, a british chemist
invented electric light.

Over the next few decades,

Other inventors produced
electric lamps and bulbs,

But the light
didn't last very long.

The big breakthrough came
in 1879,

When thomas edison
invented a carbon filament

That burned for 40 hours.

Then, just a year later,

He produced a bulb that burned
for more than 1,200 hours.

That finally made
electric lighting feasible.

They start
by making the coil support.

Later, they'll thread the
filament through the support.

They take a glass rod
about a half an inch long

And heat it up enough to insert
a pin just 1/1,000 inch thick.

The pin is made of tungsten,

A hard metal
that won't melt under high heat.

The rod and pin go into
a machine that heats the glass

And pressures it
into a mushroom shape.

They insert 3 or 6 wires
just .0005 inches thick,

Depending on the model
of light bulb.

They cut the wires
to the required length,

Which also depends on the model.

Then they curl the ends
into little circles.

The coil support is finished.

Next, they build the mount

Onto which several other parts
will be assembled.

They weld on the arc tube --

A quartz tube containing a coil,
electrodes, gas, and mercury.

Next, they weld on
the bimetal switch,

Which cuts the current
to the coil and the arc tube.

Then they weld on the coil
support they prepared earlier.

They bend the coil support down
to receive the filament,

Which is made of tungsten.

Now they weld one end
of the filament to the mount

And feed the other end

Through the little circles
of the coil support...

...then weld it
to the other side of the mount.

The mount
is now fully assembled.

Next, they apply
a specific amount of pressure

To the bimetal switch
to calibrate it.

They submerge
the finished mount in alcohol

To remove any dust
or other contaminants.

They let it dry for 10 minutes

Then apply a liquid
called zirconium getter.

This draws moisture away
from the filament.

It's finally time to put
the mount in the glass bulb.

The sealing machine cuts off
excess glass from the bottom

Then melts what's left
until it attaches to the mount.

How will this light bulb work?

The electric current
travels through the filament

To the coil inside the arc tube.

The coil warms gases,

Which then vaporize
the small amount of mercury.

The mercury vapor
then conducts the current

From one electrode to another,
creating light.

The bulbs are made
into different shapes and sizes.

A machine blows air
in the hot glass

While a mold creates the form.

A special flame
lets the glass cool slowly

So it won't become brittle
from the stress.

They print the wattage
and voltage on the bulbs,

Then run them through an oven
at 932 degrees fahrenheit

To draw out
any humidity or impurities

That may be caught inside.

Then they go through
what's called the tipping torch.

It seals in nitrogen gas,

Which prevents the filament
from overheating.

Now the bulb is ready
for its first test --

A 10-minute burn to make sure
it operates properly

And there's no air inside.

Finally,
it's time to attach the socket.

They apply cement on the base
then hook up the bulb.

The bulb passes through a flame
that cures the cement.

The next machine
cleans the socket with acid...

...so it can be soldered
at two points.

The finished bulbs
are put aside for 48 hours

Then retested
before being shipped out.

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