The plastics industry manufactures

polymer A polymer (; Greek '' poly-'', "many" + '' -mer'', "part") is a substance or material consisting of very large molecules called macromolecules, composed of many repeating subunits. Due to their broad spectrum of properties, both synthetic a ...

materials—commonly called

plastics Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptabi ...

—and offers services in plastics important to a range of industries, including packaging, building and

construction Construction is a general term meaning the art and science to form objects, systems, or organizations,"Construction" def. 1.a. 1.b. and 1.c. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) Oxford University Press 2009 and ...

electronics The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...

aerospace Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and ast ...

, and

transportation Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipelin ...

. It is part of the

chemical industry The chemical industry comprises the companies that produce industrial chemicals. Central to the modern world economy, it converts raw materials ( oil, natural gas, air, water, metals, and minerals) into more than 70,000 different products. ...

. In addition, as

mineral oil Mineral oil is any of various colorless, odorless, light mixtures of higher alkanes from a mineral source, particularly a distillate of petroleum, as distinct from usually edible vegetable oils. The name 'mineral oil' by itself is imprecise ...

is the major constituent of plastics, it therefore forms part of the

petrochemical industry The petrochemical industry is concerned with the production and trade of petrochemicals. A major part is constituted by the plastics (polymer) industry. It directly interfaces with the petroleum industry, especially the downstream sector. Comp ...

. Besides plastics production,

plastics engineering Plastics engineering encompasses the processing, design, development, and manufacture of plastics products. A plastic is a polymeric material that is in a semi-liquid state, having the property of plasticity and exhibiting flow. Plastics engine ...

is an important part of the industrial sector. The latter field is dominated by

engineering plastic Engineering plastics are a group of plastic materials that have better mechanical and/or thermal properties than the more widely used commodity plastics (such as polystyrene, PVC, polypropylene and polyethylene). Being more expensive than ...

raw material A raw material, also known as a feedstock, unprocessed material, or primary commodity, is a basic material that is used to produce goods, finished goods, energy, or intermediate materials that are feedstock for future finished products. As feeds ...

because of its better mechanical and thermal properties than the more widely used commodity plastics.

Companies

Markets

According to PlasticsEurope, the top three markets for plastics are packaging, building and

, and automotive.

Production

Plastics production has been growing globally. The numbers include thermoplastics and polyurethanes, as well as thermosets, adhesives, coatings and sealants and PP-fibers. Data was gathered by PlasticsEurope (PEMRG) and Consultic, or the nova-institute. However, in 2020 A.D. the COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating effect on the fossil fuel and petrochemical industry. Natural gas prices have dropped so low that gas producers were burning if off on-site (not being worth the cost to transport it to cracking facilities). In addition, bans on single-use consumer plastic (in China, the European Union, Canada, and many countries in Africa), and bans on plastic bags (in several states in the USA) has reduced demand for plastics considerably. Many cracking facilities in the USA have been suspended. The petrochemical industry has been trying to save itself by attempting to rapidly expand demand for plastic products worldwide (i.e. through pushbacks on plastic bans and by increasing the number of products wrapped in plastic in countries where plastic use is not already as widespread (i.e. developing nations)).Will coronavirus be the death or salvation of Big Plastic ?
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History

Alexander Crum Brown Alexander Crum Brown FRSE FRS (26 March 1838 – 28 October 1922) was a Scottish organic chemist. Alexander Crum Brown Road in Edinburgh's King's Buildings complex is named after him. Early life and education Crum Brown was born at 4 Bellev ...

discovered the carbon double bond in ethylene * James Swinburne, the Father of British Plastics, revolutionized the plastics industry in Europe. * Leo Baekeland, whom created the first plastic, Bakelite. *

Hermann Staudinger Hermann Staudinger (; 23 March 1881 – 8 September 1965) was a German organic chemist who demonstrated the existence of macromolecules, which he characterized as polymers. For this work he received the 1953 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He is also ...

, who received the Nobel Prize for his discoveries of Macromolecules and Polymers, the chemical backbone of plastics.

Associations

United States

* American Plastics Council (

trade association A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry. An industry trade association partic ...

) * Society of the Plastics Industry * American Chemistry Council

Europe

* European Polymer Federation (scientific)

United Kingdom

* British Plastics Federation (trade association)

India

* Plastindia

International

* International Association of Plastics Distributors * Society of Plastics Engineers

Countries and sites

Beccles Beccles ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . The town is shown on the milestone as from London via the A145 and A12 roads, north-east of London as the crow fl ...

is a town in England which is a center of the plastics industry *

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie (; ) is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Erie is the fifth largest city in Pennsylvania and the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 ...

is a center of the plastics industry in the United States * Oyonnax is called Plastic Valley in France *

Stenungsund Stenungsund () is a locality and the seat of Stenungsund Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 9,987 inhabitants in 2010. Overview Stenungsund was once only an idyllic bathing and vacation location on the Swedish west coast. A landm ...

is a town in Sweden which is considered to be a centre for the plastic industry in Scandinavia

Initiatives

Plastics 2020 Challenge The Plastics 2020 Challenge is a campaign to reduce the quantity of plastic waste sent to landfill. In 2009, the plastics industry, PlasticsEurope, the Packaging and Films Association (PAFA) and the British Plastics Federation (BPF), launched i ...

* Plastics Free July

Journals and conferences

* Plastics News * Plastics News Global Group

Trade Shows

* NPE – National Plastics Expo (USA) *

Chinaplas Chinaplas () is an Asian trade show for the plastics and rubber industries. History Chinaplas is currently the largest international trade fair for the plastics and rubber in Asia and the second largest in the world after K Fair, Germany. The ...

(China) * K (Germany) * Plastimagen (Mexico) * Plastindia and Plastivision (India) * Plastpol (Poland) * Interplas (United Kingdom) * Interplastica (Russia)

References

External links

* Industries (economics) {{Industry-stub