Question

Why is silicone so expensive?

Answer 1

The cost of a material will depend on many factors from the availability of raw Materials, its transportation, manufacturing process, the amount the product is prepared etc. The silicone is prepared by converted sand to silica and then converted to silicone.

Complete step-by-step answer: Before discussing the factors that why silicone is so expensive, first let us discuss silicone.
We know that silicone is a polymer more precisely speaking it an extraordinary elastomer which has fascinating properties even at elevated temperature which makes it unique and better than the other rubber.
The silicone is called the premium quality rubber or simply premium rubber.
Silicone or called as polysiloxane is a polymer which is synthesized by the combination of repeated units of siloxanes. The siloxanes are functional groups which has –Si-o-Si bond with units of formulae$(-{{R}_{2}}Si-O-Si{{R}_{2}}-)$. The R group will be an organic group.
The silicones will be colorless rubbery material or oils and the major forms in which these silicones obtained are silicone resins, silicone oil, silicone rubber etc. And these find application as adhesives, medical fields, for making utensils etc.
So here we know in silicone Si and O is present. Si being the second most abundant material raises the question of silicone being the expensive product.
We should know that the cost of the final product is calculated by considering several factors like availability of raw materials, its transportation, energy and cost required for the manufacturing, etc.
Now let us discuss the factors that make silicone expensive. The main reason is the cost of production, specifically the high energy cost during the production. Since the silicone is prepared by the conversion of the sand into high purity silica. And the formed silica undergoes refinement process prior to the polymerization of the silica to form the silicones. And many expensive reagents are used in the process like HF, Copper etc. These factors increase the expense of production and hence increases the rate of the finished product.

Note: Many students get confused between silicone and silicon, since it has almost similar spelling and many pronounce in the same style too. Silicon is an element in group 16, which belongs to the same group of oxygen. And silicone is the polymer formed by the combination of siloxane units. And silica is the other name for silicon dioxide.