My master says that, but you can’t find plastic in the ground, can you?
Answer
Dear Yoran,
a raw material is a material that you use to make something. Some raw materials actually come from the ground: just think of coal, petroleum or metal ores, but there are also a lot of raw materials that we find above ground: water, oxygen, wood,…
The examples given so far are basic raw materials. Plastic is not a basic raw material because it was first created by humans (from, for example, the raw material oil). However, plastic can then serve as a raw material for all kinds of objects: just think of plastic cups, toothbrushes, packaging material, toys,…
So your master has certainly used the word raw material correctly: a raw material is a basic material with which to make something.
Answered by
Prof. Dr. Geert-Jan Graulus
(Bio)chemistry Protein-based materials Tissue regeneration biosensors
Agoralaan University Campus Building D BE-3590 Diepenbeek
http://www.uhasselt.be/
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