This large and diverse sector includes facilities producing basic chemicals and those that manufacture products through further processing of chemicals. The chart below shows the number of facilities by chemical manufacturing subsectors that reported to TRI for 2022.
Basic chemicals facilities produce large quantities of chemicals that are often used to make other chemicals or products. Basic chemicals include petrochemicals, industrial gases, and synthetic dyes and pigments.
Coatings and adhesives facilities mix pigments, solvents, and binders into architectural and industrial paints; manufacture paint products such as paint removers and thinners; and manufacture adhesives, glues, and caulking compounds.
Resins and synthetic rubber facilities manufacture resins, plastic materials, synthetic rubber, and fibers and filaments.
Facilities in the “Other Chemical Products” subsector make chemicals for a wide variety of applications. These include chemicals used in photography, explosives, inks and toners, and transportation equipment like antifreeze or brake fluid.
Chemical manufacturing creates products by transforming organic and inorganic raw materials with chemical processes. Chemicals generally are classified into two groups: commodity chemicals and specialty chemicals. Commodity chemical manufacturers produce large quantities of basic and relatively inexpensive compounds in large plants, often built specifically to make one chemical. Commodity plants often run continuously, typically shutting down only a few weeks a year for maintenance.
Specialty-batch or performance chemical manufacturers produce smaller quantities of more expensive chemicals on an "as needed" basis that are used less frequently. Often there is only one or a limited number of suppliers producing a given product. In contrast to the production of commodity chemicals, batch manufacturing requires that the raw materials, processes, operating conditions, and equipment change on a regular basis to respond to the needs of customers.
The Chemical sector produces a multitude of environmental impacts. It is one of the largest users of natural gas, which is required for energy and as a feedstock. The sector emitted more than 1.5 million tons of criteria air pollutants, of which more than 80 percent were carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen oxides (NOx) (NEI, 2002). Nearly half of these emissions are energy related. The Chemical sector also manages a huge amount of chemicals that are reported to EPA's Toxic Release Inventory. About 5 percent of the more than 10 billion pounds of chemicals managed are disposed of or otherwise released to air and water, while the rest goes to treatment, energy recovery, and recycling.
Chemical industry is a vast industry that incorporates all different types of product producing industries whose generation is based on heavy use of chemicals. Usually, industries that are involved with industrial chemical generation are broadly known as chemical industry. As per the end-products, processes or raw materials associated with chemical industries, such industry can be classified into several classes. Understanding the huge diversity of chemical producing industries, such chemical industries are usually categorized under broad categories such as inorganic and organic chemical producing industries, fertilizer industries, refining and petroleum industries,
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