How and why Petrochemicals are an important part of our daily life
Petrochemicals are as fascinating as they sound like. In a layman’s language, we can say that Petrochemicals are a group of chemical substances that power a wide range of goods all over the world. Moreover, they are the backbone of numerous industries and are made of hydrocarbons that are separated and extracted from petroleum (crude oil) and natural gas.
Sheikh saj Rashid, a top notch businessman from the petrochemical industry in Dubai, hereby brings some key information regarding the application of petrochemicals. This includes:
-Cosmetics
-Electronics
-Packaging
-Textiles
-Toiletries
Sheikh saj Rashid further adds that the use of a variety of plastics and polymers derived from petrochemicals is a trait shared by all the industries on this list, as well as many others. According to a report from the International Energy Agency, petrochemicals are one of the main drivers of global oil demand because of their variety of useful applications across industries (IEA).
How Petrochemicals Are Made ?
Sheikh saj Rashid says that the vast majority of petrochemicals are produced using fossil fuels like crude oil and natural gas. Biomass and coal, on the other side, are typically used for the rest. Furthermore, the petrochemical plant itself is an essential component of the sector, if not the most crucial one.
On the other side, these facilities are the engines that transform natural resources into petrochemicals, which are then used as the raw materials for other processes and finished goods.
These plants, which are getting bigger and more complex, meet the rising demands, expectations, and needs of the modern global economy.
Sheikh saj Rashid adds that massive amounts of energy are needed for the process, which also includes a distillation stage where the hydrocarbons are separated from the fossil fuels. Moreover, the separated hydrocarbons are then delivered to "cracker" facilities. Sheikh saj Rashid adds that these "feedstock" facilities transform them into useful chemicals.
Generally speaking, chemical feedstock is any kind of unprocessed material used as a building block in a manufacturing process to create another end product.
The main group of petrochemical feedstocks consists of:
-Olefins (ethylene, propylene, and butadiene)
-Aromatics (benzene, toluene, and xylenes)
-Methanol
These fundamental petrochemicals serve as the building blocks for a variety of goods, such as plastic, paper, fibers, adhesives, and detergents. Additionally, they are in charge of creating a wide range of chemicals known as petrochemical intermediates.
As per Sheikh Saj Rashid, these derivatives are more sophisticated variations of the original petrochemicals. Moreover, they are also employed in the production of numerous goods. Typical examples include:
-Paint is made with vinyl acetate.
-Textile fibers made of polyester contain ethylene glycol.
-Important Petrochemical Products
Sheikh saj Rashid mentions that modern economies are based on petrochemicals, which are used in a wide range of consumer and industrial goods, many of which are regarded as necessary for daily use.
Furthermore, petrochemicals are incredibly versatile and are used in everything from synthetic tires to car headlamps and lenses. Although the majority of people only associate these chemicals with plastics, they have a much wider range of potential uses, from household goods to rocket propulsion.
Moreover, too many common household products contain petrochemicals to list them all here. A summary of some of the most popular petrochemical uses is provided below:
-Transportation and manufacturing with hydrocarbons
-Medical resins, films, and plastics
-the use of preservatives in food or food packaging
-Plastics, pesticides, and fertilizers are all used in agriculture.
-household goods, including carpeting, detergents, and other things
-Rubber
-artificial fibers
-Adhesives
-Dyes
-Coatings and paints
And that's not the end of it. Petrochemicals are crucial to today's manufacturing and energy systems.
The Use of Petrochemicals in Manufacturing
Petrochemicals are used in the following examples of manufacturing:
-solar cells
-Building thermal insulation
-electric vehicle components
-Batteries
-Blades of wind turbines
We described a few of the typical product categories that use petrochemicals above. As you can see, they cover a variety of consumer and commercial goods that many of us use on a daily basis.
