SILICONE... What is it?

SILICONE?

Plastic? Rubber? Or Just plain weird? Used for everything from ice-cube trays to adult toys to cake tins it certainly gets around. So what is silicone??

Silicon is a natural chemical element. Silicone polymers are derived from silicon and so silicone is a  man-made product derived from silicon - a natural element that is found in solid crystalline forms, mainly sand.
Silicone, the product, maybe a liquid lubricant, a semi-solid adhesive or a rubber-like plastic polymer

USES
Liquid silicone is often used as a lubricant.
An example of a thicker form of rubberized silicone would be waterproof sealant used in bathrooms and window fitting.
Solid silicone rubber – is used for everything from cake baking cases to internal sanitary protection.

Silicone is a better option for the environment as it replaces many single-use plastics and this helps reduce the amount of plastic, throw-away trash that single-use plastics create.

SILICONE RUBBER
Silicone rubber is derived from natural products – silicon and rubber. It is made by curing or vulcanizing natural rubber from trees. Silicon is injected into the long hydrocarbon chains of natural rubber under high heat and pressure. The result is silicone rubber.

FOOD GRADE Silicone rubber is heat resistant so can be used to make cookware and reusable drinkware including oven mitts, tongs, Reusable Silicone Straws, pot holders, Reusable Water Bottles and Reusable Coffee Cups to name a few.

Silicone rubber also possesses non-stick qualities, so it can be formed into flexible cookware such as muffin and cake pans.

Sourced from: plasticisrubbish.com