What are phone chargers made of?
Phone chargers take 9 things directly, among them copper wire, electrical transformer, ferrite, printed circuit board, microchip and solder. Trace them back and you pass 62 made things on the way to 26 raw materials.
How phone chargers are made See it on the map
What goes straight in
- Copper wireat Wind the transformer
- Electrical transformerat Wind the transformer
- Ferriteat Wind the transformer
- Printed circuit boardat Place the components
- Microchipat Place the components
- Solderat Solder and brush the board
- Polycarbonateat Mold the case
- ABS plasticat Mold the case
- Brassat Fit the prongs and port
From the ground: 26 raw materials
- Iron ore through ferrite
- Manganese ore through ferrite
- Air through ABS plastic
- Copper ore through brass, copper
- Water through brass, copper
- Silica sand through printed circuit board, fiberglass
- Limestone through printed circuit board, fiberglass
- Quartz through microchip, silicon wafer
- Tin ore through brass, tin
- Crude oil through brass, aluminum
- Coal through brass, aluminum
- Gold ore through microchip, gold
- Lead ore through solder, silver
- Silver ore through solder, silver
- Zinc ore through solder, silver
- Rock salt through polycarbonate, chlorine
- Natural gas through ABS plastic, ethylene
- Sulfur through ABS plastic, pigment
- Dolomite through electrical transformer, steel, magnesium
- Trona through printed circuit board, fiberglass, soda ash
- Bauxite through brass, aluminum, alumina
- Titanium ore through ABS plastic, pigment, titanium dioxide
- Timber through microchip, silicon wafer, polysilicon, metallurgical silicon
- Corn through printed circuit board, fiberglass, soda ash, carbon dioxide
- Sugarcane through printed circuit board, fiberglass, soda ash, carbon dioxide, baker's yeast, molasses
- Sugar beet through printed circuit board, fiberglass, soda ash, carbon dioxide, baker's yeast, molasses
Made along the way: 53 things
Metals 15
Chemicals and fuels 28
Zinc oxideOxygen gasPhenolPropyleneAcetoneCaustic sodaChlorineNaphthaAmmoniaBenzeneEthyleneStyrenePigmentSulfuric acidQuicklimeArgonSoda ashPetroleum cokeHydrogenTolueneTitanium dioxideCarbon blackPropaneCarbon dioxideFormaldehydeHydrochloric acidCharcoalMethanol