Fundamentals of Petroleum and Petrochemical Engineering
Uttam Ray Chaudhuri
5.1 DEFINTIONS OF PETROCHEMICALS Petrochemicals are chemicals derived from petroleum products. Examples of petrochemicals are plastics, rubbers, fibres , paints, solvents, and detergents. In fact, petroleum products are mixtures of hydrocarbons, whereas the raw materials for petrochemicals are pure hydrocarbons separated and converted to desirable products, such as polymers, solvents, and surfactants, usually in several stages and may be grouped as (1) feedstocks ...