Industrial processes

Industrial processes are procedures involving chemical, physical, electrical, or mechanical steps to aid in the manufacturing of an item or items, usually carried out on a very large scale. Industrial processes are the key components of heavy industry.

Certain chemical process yield important basic materials for society, e.g., (cement, steel, aluminum, and fertilizer). However, these chemical reactions contribute to climate change by emitting carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, through chemical reactions, as well as through the combustion of fossil fuels to generate the high temperatures needed to reach the activation energies of the chemical reactions.

The availability of electricity and its effect on materials gave rise to several processes for plating or separating metals.

The physical shaping of materials by forming their liquid form using a mould

Many materials exist in an impure form. Purification or separation provides a usable product.

Distillation is the purification of volatile substances by evaporation and condensation

In additive manufacturing, material is progressively added to the piece until the desired shape and size are obtained.

The nature of an organic molecule means it can be transformed at the molecular level to create a range of products.