Understanding the International Petrochemicals Business - Technology, Markets and Economics

Course Summary
[Please note that for presentation in South Africa and Singapore, this course will be taught byDr Jeffrey Plotkin ]
The organic chemical industry centres on the relationships between raw materials, intermediates, end products and applications. Basic to these relationships are chemical reactions, and fundamental to the total business is economics. To be able to work successfully within this complex industry requires a combination of practical experience with an understanding of chemistry, markets and economics. The course offers an organised overview of the industry that is essential for the successful operations within it. There are no pre-requisites for this course, nor is any advanced preparation required.
8CPE creditsper training day awarded for this course

Suitability:
Class delegates include chemists, engineers, commercial, sales and purchasing staff. Also, research and development, marketing and planning personnel, chemical industry administrators who wish to increase their knowledge and experience of the chemical reactions, feedstock, markets, key players, and basic economics of the industry. Additionally, associated services including finance and banking staff, legal, government agencies, on-line services will benefit.
Course objectives:

• Insight into the 'broad picture'
  
• Understanding of the concepts the industry has evolved
  
• Understanding of the economics of the industry
  
• The refining-petrochemical interface and the origin of the industry's seven basic raw materials
  
• Understanding of the value chains that flow from the seven basic raw materials
  
• Who the major players are and their role in the massive restructuring the industry is undergoing
  

Course content:
Chemical Industry Overview

• What the industry makes
  
• Restructuring
  
• Profitability
  
• The major players
  

The Petroleum Refinery

• Steam cracking
  
• Distillation
  
• Catalytic cracking
  
• Catalytic reforming
  
• The refinery/petrochemcial interface
  

Natural and Associated Gas
The Petrochemcial Industry's Basic Ra- Materials Seven Major Groups

• Chemistry, production economics, feedstock sources and changes, applications and supply/demand balance
  

Ethylene - Sources and Reactions

• Polymerisation, oligomerisation, a-olefins, detergent alcohols
  
• Oxidation - Wacker reaction (acetaldehyde, vinyl acetate, acetic acid, acetic anhydride, PVA)
  
• Ethylene oxide/ethylene glycol/polyesters
  
• Vinyl chloride/poly (vinyl chloride)
  
• Styrene/polystyrene
  
• Ethanol
  

Propylene - Sources and Reactions

• Polymerisation, oligomerisation, oxidation reactions (acrylic acid, propylene oxide), ammoxidation, cumene hydroperoxide (phenol, acetone), oxo reactions, hydration, metathesis - Shell Higher Olefins Process
  

C4 Unsaturates - Sources and reactions

• Butadiene - polymerisation, elastomers, 'living' polymers, hexamethylenediamine; nylon intermediates; chloroprene; maleic anhydride; butenes -1 and -2, isobutylenes and MTBE
  
• The Clean Air Act
  

Benzene - Sources and Reactions

• Styrene, phenol, cyclohexane, adipic acid, caprolactam, nylons, MDI/PMDI
  

Toluene - Sources and Reactions

• Hydroealkylation, kisproportionation, toluene dissocyanate and urethanes
  

Xylenes - Sources and Reactions

• Separation; oxidation; p-xylene, terephthalic acid, Pet; fibres and bottles o-xylene, phthalic anhydride polyesters, plasticizers, m-xylene
  

Methane

• Synthesis gas
  
• Ammonia; urea
  
• Methanol; formaldehyde, thermoset polymers
  
• HCN
  
• Chlorination
  
• Acetylene; 1,4-butanediol
  

Specialties

• Speciality chemicals and engineering polymers
  

Summary

• Characteristics of the industry
  
• The important concepts the course emphasised