What are pencil erasers made of?
Pencil erasers take 9 things directly, among them synthetic rubber, natural rubber latex, sulfur, vegetable oil, titanium dioxide and pigment. Trace them back and you pass 38 made things on the way to 19 raw materials.
How pencil erasers are made See it on the map
What goes straight in
- Synthetic rubberat Blend rubber and fillers
- Natural rubber latexat Blend rubber and fillers
- Sulfurat Blend rubber and fillers
- Vegetable oilat Blend rubber and fillers
- Titanium dioxideat Blend rubber and fillers
- Pigmentat Blend rubber and fillers
- Aluminumat Press plugs into ferrules
- Brassat Press plugs into ferrules
- Adhesiveat Press plugs into ferrules
From the ground: 19 raw materials
- Natural rubber latex goes straight in
- Sulfur goes straight in
- Water through adhesive
- Soybeans through vegetable oil
- Rapeseed through vegetable oil
- Clay through vegetable oil
- Titanium ore through titanium dioxide
- Iron ore through pigment
- Crude oil through aluminum
- Coal through aluminum
- Natural gas through synthetic rubber, ethylene
- Rock salt through titanium dioxide, chlorine
- Air through titanium dioxide, sulfuric acid
- Bauxite through aluminum, alumina
- Copper ore through brass, copper
- Zinc ore through brass, zinc
- Lead ore through brass, lead
- Tin ore through brass, tin
- Limestone through aluminum, alumina, quicklime
Made along the way: 31 things
Metals 6
Chemicals and fuels 21
NaphthaBenzeneEthyleneStyreneHexaneChlorineOxygen gasSulfuric acidCarbon blackPetroleum cokeParaffin waxHydrogenTolueneCaustic sodaQuicklimePropyleneAmmoniaMethanolPhenolAcetoneNitric acid