The chemical industry comprises the companies and other organizations that develop and produce industrial, specialty and other chemicals. Central to the modern world economy, it converts raw materials into commodity chemicals for industrial and consumer products. It includes industries for petrochemicals such as polymers for plastics and synthetic fibers; inorganic chemicals such as acids and alkalis; agricultural chemicals such as fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides; and other categories such as industrial gases, speciality chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
BASF SE, an initialism of its original name Badische Anilin- und Sodafabrik, is a European multinational company and the largest chemical producer in the world. Its headquarters are located in Ludwigshafen, Germany.
Celanese Corporation, formerly known as Hoechst Celanese, is an American technology and specialty materials company headquartered in Irving, Texas. A Fortune 500 corporation, the company is the world's leading producer of acetic acid, producing about 1.95 million tonnes per year, representing approximately 25% of global production. Celanese is also the world's largest producer of vinyl acetate monomer (VAM).
The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all degree levels and in all fields of chemistry, chemical engineering, and related fields. It is one of the world's largest scientific societies by membership. The ACS is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and holds a congressional charter under Title 36 of the United States Code. Its headquarters are located in Washington, D.C., and it has a large concentration of staff in Columbus, Ohio.
The Priestley Medal is the highest honor conferred by the American Chemical Society (ACS) and is awarded for distinguished service in the field of chemistry. Established in 1922, the award is named after Joseph Priestley, one of the discoverers of oxygen, who immigrated to the United States of America in 1794. The ACS formed in 1876, spearheaded by a group of chemists who had met two years previously in Priestley's home.
Methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) is an aromatic diisocyanate. Three isomers are common, varying by the positions of the isocyanate groups around the rings: 2,2′-MDI, 2,4′-MDI, and 4,4′-MDI. The 4,4′ isomer is most widely used, and is also known as 4,4′-diphenylmethane diisocyanate. This isomer is also known as Pure MDI. MDI reacts with polyols in the manufacture of polyurethane. It is the most produced diisocyanate, accounting for 61.3% of the global market in the year 2000.
Ineos Group Limited is a British multinational conglomerate headquartered and registered in London. As of 2021, it is the fourth largest chemical company in the world, with additional operations in fuel, packaging and food, construction, automotive, pharmaceuticals, textiles, and professional sports. Ineos is organised into about 20 standalone business units, each with its own board and operating almost entirely independently, although founder Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who owns a controlling interest, and his associates, who collectively own a minority share, sit on their boards occasionally.
Adiponitrile is an organic compound with the chemical formula (CH2)4(CN)2. This viscous, colourless dinitrile is an important precursor to the polymer nylon 66. In 2005, about one million tonnes of adiponitrile were produced.
Albemarle Corporation is an American specialty chemicals manufacturing company based in Charlotte, North Carolina. It operates 3 divisions: lithium, bromine specialties and catalysts.
Lanxess AG is a German specialty chemicals company based in Cologne, Germany that was founded in 2004, via the spin-off of the chemicals division and parts of the polymers business from Bayer AG.
Clariant AG is a Swiss multinational speciality chemical company, formed in 1995 as a spin-off from Sandoz. Headquartered in Muttenz, Switzerland, the public company encompasses 74 subsidiaries in 36 countries (2022). Major manufacturing sites are located in Europe, North America, South America, China, and India. In 2022, sales from continuing operations were 5.198 billion CHF.
Engelhard Corporation was an American Fortune 500 company headquartered in Iselin, New Jersey, United States. It is credited with developing the first production catalytic converter. In 2006, the German chemical manufacturer BASF bought Engelhard for US$5 billion.
Andrew N. Liveris is an Australian former CEO and chairman of The Dow Chemical Company of Midland, Michigan. Liveris has been a member of Dow's board of directors since February 2004, CEO since November 2004 and was elected as chairman of the board effective 1 April 2006. Liveris became CEO in 2004 after holding the position of chief operating officer (COO). Afterwards he served as executive chairman of DowDuPont, where he remains a director. He is chairman of the board of Lucid Motors.
LG Chem Ltd., often referred to as LG Chemical, is the largest Korean chemical company and is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It was the 9th largest chemical company in the world by sales in 2021. It was first established as the Lucky Chemical Industrial Corporation, which manufactured cosmetics. It is now solely a business-to-business company.
DyStar is a provider of products and services for the textile, leather, paper, plastic and other chemical industries. The company combines the textile dye businesses of the former dye producers Bayer, Hoechst, BASF, ICI/Zeneca, Mitsubishi and Mitsui with the auxiliary activities of Boehme and Rotta.
Wanhua Chemical Group Co., Ltd. known as Wanhua Chemical and formerly Yantai Wanhua Polyurethane or Yantai Wanhua Polyurethanes or Yantai Wanhua, is a Chinese listed company in chemical industry.
The Chemical Industry Medal is an annual American award given to an industrial chemist by the Society of Chemical Industry America. The medal has been awarded since 1933, when it replaced the Grasselli Medal. It was initially given to "a person making a valuable application of chemical research to industry. Primary consideration shall be given to applications in the public interest." As of 1945, the criterion became "a person who ... has rendered conspicuous service to applied chemistry." More recently it has been awarded "for contributions toward the growth of the chemical industry."
The International Palladium Medal is an award given annually by the Société de Chimie Industrielle in New York to someone who has made outstanding contributions to the chemical industry on an international level. When founded in 1918, the Société de Chimie Industrielle in New York was an American section of an international organization based in Paris. It is currently an independent society.
The Award for Encouraging Disadvantaged Students into Careers in the Chemical Sciences is an American Chemical Society (ACS) award, sponsored by The Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, was instituted in 1993 with the intention of recognizing "significant accomplishments by individuals in stimulating students, underrepresented in the profession, to elect careers in the chemical sciences and engineering." It is awarded by the American Chemical Society as part of their national awards program. Recipients receive $5,000, a certificate, up to $1,500 for travel expenses, and a grant of $10,000 to their designee of choice. The first recipient was Henry C. McBay.
The Castner Gold Medal on Industrial Electrochemistry is an biennial award given by the Electrochemical Technology Group of Society of Chemical Industry (SCI) to an authority on applied electrochemistry or electrochemical engineering connected to industrial research. The award is named in honor of Hamilton Castner, a pioneer in the field of industrial electrochemistry, who patented in 1892 the mercury cell for the chloralkali process. Castner was an early member of SCI.
