The world of plastic welding is hidden from most people – something that goes unnoticed, flying under the radar. But it’s actually used in a wide variety of functions, from the simple to the remarkable. The benefits of plastic welding are multiple, including making watertight and airtight materials for different purposes. Here are three amazing uses of the simple but essential material known as plastic.
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Reef Protection
Coral reefs require our study, protection, and scientific probing. As the atmosphere heats, so do the sea, which changes the dynamics of coral reefs and their surrounding sea life. To study and protect reefs, marine biologists use inflatable rib-type structures that, of course, must be reliably watertight.
Because these structures are frequently custom-made, they’re often welded using the plastic welding machines we provide. Helping to give coral reefs the future they deserve, plastic welding allows scientists to rapidly build and deploy inflatable, floating protective structures that aid in the study and understanding of the world’s most beautiful and endangered sea life.
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Observatory Insulation
The higher the observatory, the closer stargazers and astronomers can get to the heavens. Therefore, observatories are located on mountain tops, where the air is thinner, light pollution is lower, and the night sky is as clear as possible. The problem is that during the winter months, these places can be extremely cold. For astronomers in the winter, temperatures drop dramatically, even in Arizona. Therefore, they have to ensure the equipment they use to stargaze, which is outside of the observatory, doesn’t freeze and break.
Given this fact, overcoming the extreme cold (-20 or colder) weather to protect the Steward Observatory equipment was an essential task that has been solved by Heatgun. The heatgun was small enough to fit into the tight spaces in the observatory but, at the same time, powerful enough to keep the Observatories equipment free of ice and snow. Therefore protecting sensors and telescopes.
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Watertight Dams
Another example of plastic welding’s unseen but vital contribution to the world around us has to do with dams. You might not expect huge dams to use plastic welding. They’re so massive and powerful that you might consider that they’d only be constructed from metal and stone. However, it’s difficult to use these two materials in a completely watertight fashion because wherever there’s a seam or a joint, there’s the potential for water to leak through due to the porous elements in metal and stone.
Seeing as dams are made to be completely watertight, with not even a trickle of water finding its way through, plastic welding plays a vital function in keeping them watertight. It’s a key aspect in the huge, impressive dams that we see worldwide, albeit one of the lesser-used and lesser-known aspects. While dams astound us with their sheer drops and huge stone or concrete structures, it’s the plastic welding that helps to keep the dam strong and rigid.
Plastic welding is often the unsung hero of many of the world’s necessities. Our coral reefs, observatories, and dams are three areas where plastic welding has ensured their security. So, if plastic welding is vital to these amazing areas of the world, just think about how you could use it in your projects – your options are limitless!