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Cooker
Whether you are the cook in the house, or you just eat the food
which has been prepared, chemicals are an important part of the piece
of equipment which is vital to your meals - the cooker. This is made from
a variety of structural and insulation materials as well as the electrical
or gas fittings, and parts of it, such as shelves and trim, may be protected
by chromium plating.
Others, along with some of the saucepans, are likely to be in stainless
steel, and the hob could be
ceramic.
Other saucepans and utensils could be in aluminium
and many of them are likely to have a non-stick coating of PTFE.
If cakes are being baked in the oven, these
may contain bicarbonate
of soda.
Sink
The job which everyone 'loves' - washing-up! - would be even
more of a chore if it wasn't for the chemicals in washing-up
liquid. There are even chemicals in the sink as this is
probably made of stainless
steel, and if you have a washing-up bowl this may be made of polypropylene.
Worktop
The kitchen worktop is not
only made with chemicals in the form of a strong, decorative laminate,
but is covered in a number of items containing chemicals, from salt,
sugar
and sweeteners
for use in food preparation, to kitchen
foil for covering and protecting foods. You can also see what
you are doing better because of the chemicals in the fluorescent
light above you.
Cupboard
Chemicals are probably in many of your kitchen cupboards, but
in this cupboard they can be found in a plastic container of bleach
and the disinfectant
which are used for getting rid of stains and germs, and in the air
freshener which is for dealing with lingering cooking smells.
Microwave
In our fast-moving world, chemicals are vital in the
microwaves
we use as a quick and efficient way of heating food. They are also there
in the plastics such as polyethylene
which make good containers for use in microwave ovens.
Kettle
Chemicals are on hand when you make a cup of tea, in the kettle
which may be made of a plastic such as polypropylene,
or it may be steel with chromium
plating. If your area suffers from hard water, there could also
be scaling
inside the kettle.
Floor
With all the spills that happen in the kitchen, a floor which
is easy to clean makes life simpler. Floor
tiles, which may be ceramic
or made of a synthetic polymer such as PVC
or polyurethane,
and the waxes
in the floor cleaners, help to make cleaning the floor a simple job.
Washing
Machine
Everyone wants their clothes to
come out of the washing machine clean and fresh and the chemicals in washing
powders or liquids, detergents
and fabric conditioners,
make sure that this happens. Water
softeners are an important ingredient.
Refrigerator
Chemicals can be found both
in the refrigerator and inside it. The two main components of the refrigerator
itself are the refrigerant
and the heat insulation, and then inside the fridge , food may be protected
by cling
film. Manufactured foods in the fridge may contain also
preservatives or other food
additives.
Bag
of Shopping
When you are unpacking your bag of shopping you will be handling
many chemicals in the form of packaging. Polyethylene
bags, polystyrene
foam trays, PVC
film and PET
bottles, as well as cellulose-based materials, are all common packaging
materials for household items. These are all vital for protecting food,
drink and other items.
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