Chemical manufacturing produces chemicals for various industries, with a basic production system of preparing raw materials, reacting them in a reactor, purifying the products, and packaging or shipping them. Chemical plants require personnel such as engineers, operators, and maintenance staff. The industry is divided into seven categories, including basic and specialty chemicals.
Chemical manufacturing is a broad category that includes the production of chemicals for agricultural, pharmaceutical, construction, and manufacturing applications, to name a few. Chemical companies, which can range from small specialty chemicals producers to large global corporations, produce chemicals to meet industry needs in a variety of fields. The study of chemical manufacturing as a whole includes advanced engineering, production support and maintenance, and efficient material handling operations.
While the variety of chemicals produced by chemical companies is staggering in size, most plants follow a basic system for production. The chemical raw materials, which serve as the reagents to make the final product, must first be prepared and transported to the chemical plant. Once the raw materials have been prepared, they are sent to a reactor where the chemical reactions necessary to form the product take place. From the reactor, the unused raw material, by-products and desired products are sent to a purification system. After the final product has been purified, it is sent for packaging or shipped via pipeline to a customer.
Chemical manufacturing involves knowledge of chemical raw materials, a deep understanding of various chemical reactions and production methods, and knowledge of logistics. The chemical plant incorporates aspects of all of these characteristics and is the heart of any chemical manufacturing operation. Chemical plants usually operate on an ongoing basis, which means production never stops unless there is an emergency, malfunction, or scheduled maintenance shutdown.
Running a chemical plant requires a variety of personnel. Chemical engineers are responsible for developing new processes and optimizing existing processes. Operations specialists, or operators, are responsible for the day-to-day activities associated with taking process measurements, operating equipment, and monitoring process performance. Laboratory personnel and technicians are needed for quality assurance and non-routine analysis required by engineers. Maintenance and support personnel, such as mechanics, mechanical engineers, and electrical engineers, are responsible for supporting plant operating systems.
Chemical manufacturing is an important field, because most industries require chemicals in one way or another. Chemical companies meet the demand of the industry by producing a wide range of products. These products can range from specialty chemicals made in small batches to general purpose, high volume chemicals. Industries must constantly develop new methods and products to keep pace with the chemical demands of residential, commercial and industrial use.
Traditionally, the chemical industry divides chemical production into seven categories. These categories include the basic chemical segment; the segment of synthetic materials; the agrochemicals segment; the paint, coating and adhesives segment; the segment of cleaning preparations; the pharmaceutical sector; and a diverse segment. In a much broader sense, chemical manufacturing is often divided into a segment for basic chemicals and a segment for specialty chemicals.
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