Thursday, November 26, 2009

What I Know about Petrochemical by Hirapille

Petrochemical is a general name for the petroleum and chemicals combines with processing or reaction any compound obtained from petroleum or natural gas. Petroleum is a mixture of hydrocarbon molecules. The molecules have different sizes and number of atoms. The small molecules have few carbon atoms and low boiling points, while the large molecules have many carbon atoms and high boiling points. In this form, petroleum is difficult to ignite and therefore is little use. It must be refined to make useful fuels and chemicals.

Petrochemical, any one of a large group of chemicals derived from a component of petroleum or natural gas. The cracking processes for manufacturing gasoline produce vast quantities of gaseous hydrocarbons. Originally considered waste products suitable only for use as illuminants and fuels, the gases today are manufactured into petrochemical substances widely employed in industry. Important petrochemical compounds are alcohols and aldehydes, butylenes, butadiene, ethylene, propylene, toluene, styrene, acetylene, benzene, ethylene oxide, ethylene glycol, acrylonitrile, acetone, acetic acid, acetic anhydride, and ammonia. Materials made from the gases include carbon black, synthetic rubber, polystyrene, polypropylene, and polyethylene. Petrochemicals are widely used in agriculture, in the manufacture of plastics, synthetic fibers, and explosives, and in the aircraft and automobile industries.

At industry, chemical is use to separate the petroleum (oil and gas) into fraction to fractional with a process. For example distillation process, absorption process, filtration process and etc.

Petrochemical industry plays a major role in our daily life. Almost everything that were are dependent nowadays are made from petrochemicals be it plastics, clothes, home appliance and etc. being in professional chemical engineering, one need to keep up with fast changing petrochemical industry especially when new process for new product, new chemicals an invented everyday.

Petrochemicals are chemical products made from raw materials of
petroleum or other hydrocarbon origin. Although some of the chemical compounds that originate from petroleum may also be derived from other sources such as coal or natural gas, petroleum is a major source of many.

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