🏭 Melamine is baked urea

Good morning. Does anyone have melamine dinnerware? Is that still a thing?

From the condenser:

· OxyChem is upgrading is chlor-alkali site

· Proman's melamine technology

· MOTD: vinyl acetate

Oxy's chlor-alkali site is getting a makeover

Occidental Petroleum's chemical subsidiary, OxyChem, has announced a $1.1 billion project to modernize and expand their chlor-alkali site in La Porte, Texas by 2026.

The context you need:

The chlor-alkali process is a century-old electrochemical process that converts brine into hydrogen gas, chlorine gas, and a solution of sodium hydroxide. Most of that hydrogen is used for heating on-site (or to make hydrogen chloride), most of the chlorine ends up in the PVC market (after you react it with ethylene, add some heat, and then polymerize the product), and most of the sodium hydroxide is used to make detergents and soaps.

Okay, so what's the deal here?

Electrochemical processes occur inside electrochemical cells, and not all electrochemical cells are equal. While most plants use membrane cells nowadays, plenty of older plants still use diaphragm cells or mercury cells. OxyChem's plant in La Porte is based on diaphragm cells, which are relatively inefficient and rely on a separator made of asbestos fibers (which the EPA has been trying to eliminate in the US).

Bigger picture:

OxyChem doesn't cite the asbestos situation in their earnings call. Instead, they talk about how the project will increase production capacities and produce a higher-value grade of sodium hydroxide (because those are the facts that increase cash flow). That doesn't mean OxyChem isn't thinking about the environment. After all, this is the company's largest chlor-alkali site—ensuring its long-term viability by kicking out asbestos is probably a key priority.

Making more melamine in China

Switzerland-based chemical company, Proman, will be providing the process technology for Xinji's new melamine production site in China.

Wait, what are they making?

Melamine, commonly produced by the thermal decomposition of urea, is primarily used to make melamine resins (think dinnerware, flooring, and dry erase boards) and foams (like the Magic Eraser) after you polymerize it with formaldehyde. Since urea (in the granular form) is the most simple and commonly used fertilizer in the world, you'll typically find these melamine plants attached to fertilizer production sites. The mass integration works out well because the conversion of urea to melamine isn't perfect and yields some ammonia and CO2 (which are what you use to make urea).

Okay, so a new plant?

Yup, but this one is super big (relatively speaking). Usually melamine plants make between 20,000 to 80,000 tons of this stuff each year. This site will be the world's largest with an annual capacity of 120,000 tons per year (that's roughly a 6% increase in total global production from this plant alone). Since Xinji is already the world's largest producer the new site puts them far out in front.

Zooming out:

Xinji is saying that they chose Proman’s melamine process because it was the least energy intensive option. That’s code for most economical—remember, we make melamine by heating up urea, so most of your operation costs are tied to that heating step.

Some more headlines:

• McDermott is doing a feasibility study for low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia in Australia

• Avient is divesting its distribution business for $950 million

• C&EN covered how the chemical industry will benefit from the Inflation Reduction Act

• The Institute of Scrap Recycling announced that it doesn't consider plastics-to-fuel as recycling

• India's ethanol blending program is going to change gasoline demand in the region

Molecule of The Day:

Today's MOTD is the one you've been waiting for… vinyl acetate.

First produced by a German chemist in 1912, the world now makes nearly 8 million tonsof vinyl acetate (often called vinyl acetate monomer—VAM) each year.

As long as that VAM is being produced outside of China you can be confident it's made by reacting ethylene and acetic acid (31% of all acetic acid is used to make VAM). Companies in China produce VAM from acetylene (just like how that German chemist did it a century ago).

We make VAM not because it's super useful on its own, but because of all the things we can produce with it. About a third of all VAM is used to makePVAc(wood glue), another third for (contact lenses), and the rest becomes, EVOH, and VAE.

Aside from China, the main producers of VAM are Celanese, Dow Chemical, and LyondellBasell among others.

In case you're interested:

• Article: It’s hard to understand the petrochemical industry without knowing in's & out's of the 'enes.

• Podcast: Check out this episode featuring Dr. Tina Tosukhowong of PTT Global Chemical on her career and stance on sustainability.

• Tip: Trying to understand the stock market? The Average Joe boils it down so the everyday investor can keep up.*

• Book: Maybe you've never heard of the Scientific Design company, but if you're in the industry, this one is worth a read.*

The bottoms:

All views represent those of the author not their employer.