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The Chlorine Tree: Chlorine Is A Major Building Block in Modern Chemistry

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32 views

The Chlorine Tree: Chlorine Is A Major Building Block in Modern Chemistry

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petros222
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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INFORMATION 02

PUBLIC INFORMATION
The chlorine tree April 2016

Chlorine is a major building block in modern chemistry

Whether you insulate a house, make synthetic rubber, use microchips or solar cells, purify waste
water or simply apply some deodorant, chlorine is always involved. Based on simple table salt,
chlorine is a major building block in modern chemistry. Many of these products don’t contain the
chlorine itself, but chlorine and chlorinated substances are used in many hundreds of production
processes. Some examples of applications are shown in the chlorine tree.

 Aluminium chloride plant tissues. It is used in food science as a thickener and to


stabilize emulsions including ice cream. It is also a constituent
A major industrial catalyst. It accelerates chemical reactions
of toothpaste, laxatives, diet pills, water-based paints,
used to make medicines, paints, rubber, lubricants, wood
detergents, textile sizing and various paper products.
preservatives, the plastic polystyrene (through its use in
production of ethylbenzene to make the styrene) and  Chlorinated alkanes
detergents.
Chlorinated alkanes or paraffins (CPs) are straight-chain
 Aramide fibers hydrocarbons that have been chlorinated. The largest
application is as a plasticiser in flexible PVC and in paints,
Aramide fibers (aromatic polyamide) are a class of heat-
sealants and adhesives.
resistant and superstrong synthetic fibers used in aerospace and
military applications, for body armor fabric, in bicycle tyres and  Chloroprene
as a substitute for asbestos.
A synthetic rubber with properties such as good mechanical
 Carboxymethylcellulose strength, high ozone and weather resistance, aging resistance,
low flammability and chemical resistance.
An acid derivative of cellulose that is the chief constituent of all
 Dichloromethane  Polycarbonate
A chlorinated solvent, largely used in pharmaceutical Synthetic polymer used for e.g. car lamps, CDs and DVDs.
production.
 Polychloroprene
 Dyestuffs A family of synthetic rubbers produced by polymerization of
Intensely coloured complex organic compounds used to colour chloroprene.
textiles, leather, paper and other materials. Indigo (jeans) is an
example of one such dye.  Polyurethane
A family of synthetic polymers used as foams (insulation, seats,
 Epoxy resins mattresses, shoe soles etc.) or in its hard form (e.g. ski boots).
Epoxy resins make excellent adhesives and are one of the few
adhesives that can be used on metals. They are also used for  Propylene glycol
protective coatings, in electronic circuit boards and for patching Or 1,2-propanediol, an alcohol used in brake and hydraulic fluid
holes in concrete pavement. and as industrial antifreeze.

 Ethylcellulose  PTFE
Water-insoluble polymer used in controlled-release Polytetrafluoroethylene (e.g. Teflon®), a synthetic resin with
pharmaceuticals. many applications, from non-stick material on cookware to lub-
ricants.
 Flocculants
Flocculants consist of various polymers and are used to increase  PVC
the efficiency of waste water purification (see iron chloride). Polyvinyl chloride, popular synthetic polymer used in construc-
tion (door and window frames, flooring material), car dash-
 Glycerol boards, flexible hoses, water piping, cling film, toys and many
Also called glycerin is a viscous liquid that is widely used in more!
pharmaceutical formulations and food preparations.
 PVDC
 Glycol ethers Polyvinylidene dichloride, a high-tech plastic, used in the form
Solvents used in cleaning compounds, liquid soaps, cosmetics. of films or fibres.

 HCFC  PVDF
Hydrochlorofluorocarbons used as a precursor to polytetrafluo- PVDF is a specialty plastic of the fluoropolymer family; it is used
roethylene (e.g. Teflon®). generally in applications requiring the highest purity, strength
and resistance to solvents, acids, bases and heat.
 HCl
Hydrochloric acid, the solution of hydrogen chloride (HCl) in  Silicon
water. A corrosive, strong mineral acid with major industrial Chemical element (symbol Si and atomic number 14). Chlorine is
uses. It is also found naturally in gastric acid. used to produce high-purity silicon for solar cells.

 HFC  Silicon dioxide


Hydrofluorocarbons, used as refrigerants and foam propellants. SiO2 also found in sand. Raw material for silicon production.

 Iron chloride  Sodium hypochlorite


Ferrous chloride (FeCl2) and ferric chloride (FeCl3) serve as floc- Has been used for centuries for bleaching and disinfecting. Com-
culating agents in wastewater treatment. monly found in household bleach. Formula NaOCl.

 Linear alkyl benzene  s-Resins


An intermediate in detergent production. Chemically inert, low coloured, water repellent resins used as
additives in the rubber industry.
 Methylcellulose
Derived from plant cellulose and used as a thickener and emulsi-  Titanium dioxide
fier in various food and cosmetic products A widely used, white pigment for cosmetics, paper, paint etc.
Chlorine is used to purify the titanium dioxide from its minerals.
 Nylon
Polyamide, a family of one of the most commonly used polymers  Trichloroethylene
(e.g. for fabrics). A chlorinated solvent used as feedstock to produce fluorinated
hydrocarbons (e.g. for use in refrigeration) and fluorinated poly-
 Perchloroethylene mers and as an industrial solvent in various applications.
Chlorinated solvent typically used in dry-cleaning.
Much more about chlorine on www.eurochlor.org.
Chlorine chemistry applications: www.chlorinethings.eu

Euro Chlor Communications


AV. Van Nieuwenhuyse 4, box 2
B—1160 Brussels
Tel. +32 2 676 73 51
www.eurochlor.org

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