PETROCHEMICALS

Petrochemicals are a set of very specific chemical compounds, which can be made from oil, natural gas,
coal or other sources. The vast majority of petrochemicals, however, are derived from oil or natural gas.
Oil and natural gas are used as feedstocks (i.e., the main raw material used in the manufacture of a
product) to make petrochemicals. Petroleum and natural gas are made up of hydrocarbon molecules,
which are comprised of one or more carbon atoms, to which hydrogen atoms are attached.

Currently, oil and gas are the main sources of the raw materials because they are the least expensive, most
readily available, and can be processed most easily into the primary petrochemicals listed. Only about five
percent of the oil and gas consumed each year is needed to make all the petrochemical products.

Petrochemicals have had a dramatic impact on our food, clothing, shelter and leisure. Some synthetics,
tailored for particular uses, actually perform better than products made by nature because of their unique
properties.

COMPOSITION OF PETROCHEMICALS

Feedstock sources

Ethane, propane and butanes: Obtained primarily from natural gas processing plants.

Naphtha: Obtained primarily from petroleum refineries.

Benzene, toluene and xylenes as a whole referred to as BTX: Primarily obtained from
petroleum refineries by extraction from the reformate produced in catalytic reformers.

Gas oil: Also obtained primarily from petroleum refineries. Methane and BTX (benzene,
toluene and xylenes) are used directly as feedstock for producing petrochemicals.

The most basic petrochemicals are considered the building blocks for organic chemistry.

The Primary Petrochemicals are:

Olefins or Alkenes - hydrocarbons characterized by having at least one double bond;

specifically, any of a series of open-chain hydrocarbons.

o Ethylene, propylene and butadiene

Aromatics - an organic compound characterized by multiple double bonds and a ring

structure, like the benzene ring. Aromatics are very stable because the double bonds are
conjugated, meaning that the carbon-to-carbon bonds go in a pattern of single bond, then
double bond, then single, then double, etc.
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 o Benzene, toluene and xylenes

Methanol an oxygen-hydrogen group that comes from natural gas.

From this base set of petrochemicals comes a very large number of other chemicals, which are called,
petrochemical derivatives or simply, derivatives. The derivatives are grouped according to how many
steps it takes to convert the basic compound into the new derivative. For example, it takes one step to
convert ethylene to acetaldehyde; therefore acetaldehyde can be considered a first-derivative of ethylene.

Petrochemical Intermediates and its derivatives:

Petrochemical intermediates are generally produced by chemical conversion of primary petrochemicals to
form more complicated derivative products. Derivative products can be made in a variety of ways:
directly from primary petrochemicals; through intermediate products which still contain only carbon and
hydrogen; and, through intermediates which incorporate chlorine, nitrogen or oxygen in the finished
derivative. In some cases, they are finished products; in others, more steps are needed to arrive at the
desired composition.

One of the most important is polymerization. It is used in the production of plastics, fibers and synthetic
rubber, the main finished petrochemical derivatives. Some typical petrochemical intermediates are:
vinyl acetate for paint, paper and textile coatings; vinyl chloride for polyvinyl chloride
(PVC); resin manufacture; ethylene glycol for polyester textile fibers; and styrene which
is important in rubber and plastic manufacturing.

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PRODUCTION OF PETROLUEM & PETROCHEMICALS

The petrochemical industry covers a vast array of products, and the manufacturing processes vary from
one product to another. Sometimes the same products use different in raw materials, technological
processes, and even different equipment. Therefore, petrochemical industries were divided into 3 groups
as follows:
Upstream Petrochemical Industry and Unconventional Upstream Industry
Intermediate/Midstream Petrochemical Industry
Downstream Petrochemical Industry

Upstream Petrochemical Industry

The upstream market stage in the petrochemical industry refers to the exploration and production of
natural gas and crude oil. Its the first process in the industry, and it focuses on finding economically
viable sources of petroleum products.
Exploratory drilling is most often associated with the upstream process of the petrochemical industry.
This is when companies drill into the earth to locate underwater and underground sources of natural gas
and crude oil. If the exploratory drilling finds viable fields, the natural gas and oil are extracted and pulled
to the surface to be recovered. It is performed both onshore and offshore and is usually paired with
geological and geophysical surveys to help companies better find viable sources.
Exploration
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 Operator obtaining a lease from the Owner of onshore or offshore acreage thought to
contain oil or gas. Operator conducts geological and geophysical surveys to determine the
first well site which is called a wildcat well.
Drilling
Drilling is physically creating the borehole in the ground that will eventually become
an oil or gas well. There are also highly complex J and S configured wells with
numerous branches, or laterals, emanating from the original, or mother, hole. These are
called deviated wells. This work is done by rig contractors and service companies in the
Oilfield Services business sector.
Production
Production is where reserves are converted to cash by maximizing the recovery of
hydrocarbons from subsurface reservoirs and efficiently bringing the hydrocarbons to the
surface and treating them as needed to make them marketable.
An Unconventional Upstream
Unconventional resources are defined as any resource extracted, or produced, by any method other than
the traditional vertical or slightly deviated well.
The three main sources of technological breakthroughs that have made unconventional developments
profitable include:
Horizontal Drilling
Horizontal wells reduce the size of the drill pad footprint and enable production along the
length of a reservoir.

Hydraulic Fracturing
Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is the process of injecting water, chemicals, and sand
into wells. The resulting fractures in surrounding rock formations allow for hydrocarbons
to escape.

Subsea engineering (especially deep water production).

Intermediate/Midstream Petrochemical Industry
Once petroleum products are recovered in the upstream sector, they move into the midstream sector of
the petrochemical industry. The midstream sector focuses on the transportation and storage of natural gas
and crude oils.
Four major midstream operating components:
Gathering
The first step in the midstream process is field gathering. Oil and natural gas production
comes from thousands of wells.
Field Processing requires surface units that are designed and installed to:
o Measure the production rate of the oil, gas, and water from the reservoir
o Separate the oil and gas from the wastewater
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 o Remove any impurities
o Temporarily store the crude or gas until it is ready to be moved.
Transportation
After field processing, treated oil and natural gas is delivered via a huge and complex
transportation, pipeline transmission and distribution infrastructure.
Storage

Downstream Petrochemical Industry

The final market stage of the petrochemical industry processes for this sector are dedicated to turning
natural gas and oil into marketable petroleum products. However, the most important part of the
downstream market stage is refining, processing, and purifying crude oil and natural gas. When crude oil
and natural gas arrives at refineries, theyre turned into the petroleum products we use daily. They include
gasoline, kerosene, diesel oil, lubricants, waxes, and liquefied petroleum gas. In this stage upstream or
intermediate products are processed to produce downstream petrochemicals such as plastic resins,
synthetic materials such as synthetic fiber, synthetic rubber, chemicals and solvent which are feedstock for
related industries. Examples of the related industries are packaging, electric appliance, vehicle part and
textile.
The downstream segment includes complex and diverse activities including:
Refining
Petrochemicals
Distribution
Wholesale and Retail Marketing

PROCESS AND REFINING PETROCHEMICALS

Petrochemical processes are normally Continuous Processes and the raw materials are continuously fed
into the plant so as the products. Petrochemical plant would have one or more reaction systems.
Refining Process:
Coker unit processes vacuum resid, which is heated to over 900 F and put into the coke
drums, where it undergoes thermal cracking as the oil decomposes under the extreme
heat. Products include butane and lighter material, naphtha for Reforming, turbine and
diesel fuel, gas oil for Cat Cracking, and fuel grade petroleum coke.
Reformer Unit using heat, catalyst and moderate pressure, the reformer changes the
molecular structure of crude and coker naphthas to produce a high octane primary
gasoline blend stock called reformate.
Alkylation Unit uses acid catalyst to combine small molecules into larger ones
collectively called alkylate, which has a high octane and is the cleanest burning of the
gasoline blendstocks.

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 Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit uses heat and catalyst to break or crack large gas oil
molecules into a range of smaller ones, specifically gasoline, low quality diesel stocks,
and a residual oil called slurry (fuel oil).
Desulfurization Unit a device used to remove sulfur from petroleum oil.
Hydrotreating removes impurities by using hydrogen to bind with sulfur and nitrogen.
Hydrocracking breaks or cracks diesel stock material into gasoline blending stocks
using heat, catalyst and hydrogen under very high pressure.
Isomerization rearranges the atoms in a molecule so that the product has the same
chemical formula but has a different structure, such as converting normal butane to
isobutene.

MAJOR END USE PRODUCTS OF PETROCHEMICALS

Some typical petrochemical intermediates are:

- vinyl acetate for paint, paper and textile coatings vinyl chloride for
- polyvinyl chloride PVC)
- resin manufacture
- ethylene glycol for polyester - textile fibers
- styrene which is important in rubber and plastic manufacturing.

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Products and by-products of Petrochemicals:

Wax: petrochemical products also includes wax as it is a by- product of petroleum and is widely
used to make candles, various types of polishes, cartons and so forth.
Synthetic: this is another by- product that is of immense importance and which is obtained by
refining petroleum. Synthetic is used as a raw material for manufacturing different types of
garments.
Fertilizers: it is also used as fertilizers to protect crops from damage. Various kinds of pesticides
and insecticides are manufactured using petrochemical products.
Preservatives: these products also act as preservatives to canned food. It is also used for producing
different types of vitamins.
Soaps and detergents: it is a main ingredient in detergents and soaps.
Dyes: petrochemical products also include dyes which are used in ink pens. It is also included in
cloth dyes.
Plastic commodities: majority of the plastic containers, plates and cups contain this by- product of
crude oil. It is one of the widely and commonly used products as it is made of polyester.
Plasters: petrochemical products are being used for the manufacture of non stick pads, used
extensively in the medical field.
Sports shoes: are also manufactured with the use of these by- products. The flexible rubber shoes
are the results of the extensive use of synthetics which remain intact in all weathers.
Explosives: most of the explosives contain petroleum products.

PETROLEUM AND PETROCHEMICAL MARKETS

Major Oil/Petroleum Companies (also called Integrated Oil Companies IOCs) also operate assets in
other segments of the industry including in petrochemicals.

These companies include the prominent global brands that you are familiar with including:

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National Oil Companies (NOCs) are those industry participants that are owned and managed by
governments around the world.

Independents in the Upstream are those E&P companies that concentrate solely on finding and
producing oil and gas.

Midstream player companies

Downstream independent player companies

Petroleum Refineries in the Philippines

Refinery location production
Petron Limay, Bataan 29,000 m3/d
Royal Dutch Shell Batangas 19,000 m3/d
Caltex (Chevron) Batangas 13,700 m3/d

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CONCLUSION
The world has a limited supply of petroleum, and current estimations tell us that within the next few
decades mankind will have completely depleted this valuable natural resource. Although measures have
been taken to ensure that there are cheap, renewable fuel options in place for the eventuality it is still
obvious that mankind faces a serious problem when petroleum supplies finally run out. What is clear
about petroleum and petrochemicals is that it will continue to play a large role in our lives in the near to
medium term future. While technologies are being invented to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, it
will be several decades before they become commonplace and affordable. Even if the world the world
switched to an energy source independent of petroleum, one must not forget the fact that petroleum is an
integral part of modern life in terms of the things it is used to make beyond a gasoline and other fuels.
Objects as diverse as plastics, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics use various aspects of petroleum as
foundations in chemical reactions. In fact, our tremendous reliance on petroleum for manufacturing and
not for fuel is all the more reason to be conservative about simply burning it to drive across town.
There has been a slew of negative media surrounding the petrochemical industry. But regardless of what
everyone is saying, the petrochemical industry will play a huge role in benefiting economy now and for
years to come.

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