These plants are the powerhouses that convert the natural resources into petrochemicals to be used as the building blocks for other processes and products. Increasingly complex, these plants are both impressive in size and engineering, meeting the growing needs, expectations, and demand of today’s global economy. The process requires energy in huge amounts and involves a distillation phase, in which hydrocarbons are separated from the fossil fuels. The separated hydrocarbons are then sent to facilities called “crackers”. These facilities convert them into useful chemicals, known as “feedstock”.
Petrochemicals form the backbone of modern economies and are found in a wide range of consumer and industrial products, many of which are considered essential for daily use. Highly versatile, petrochemicals can be found in everything from synthetic tires to automotive headlamps and lenses. While most individuals associate these chemicals with plastics, their potential uses span a much broader spectrum of applications, from household groceries to rocket propulsion.
