Caustic Soda (NaOH)

Caustic soda is an essential raw material and process chemical in many industrial operations. ASC
delivers Caustic Soda in 48% solution (Liquid Caustic Soda) and in solid form (Flake Caustic Soda, 98%).
Pulp and paper is among the largest application for caustic soda worldwide, where it is used as a raw
material in the pulping and bleaching process, in de-inking of waste paper, and in water treatment.
In textile industry, caustic soda is used to process cotton and in the dyeing process of synthetic
fibers such as nylon and polyester.
In soap and detergent industry, caustic soda is used in saponification, the chemical process that
converts vegetable oils into soap. Caustic soda is used to manufacture anionic surfactants, a crucial
component in most detergent and cleaning products.
Oil and Gas industry uses caustic soda in the exploration, production and processing of petroleum
and natural gas, where it removes objectionable smells originating from hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and
mercaptans.
In aluminium production, caustic soda is used to dissolve bauxite ore, the raw material for
aluminium production.
In Chemical Processing Industries (CPI), caustic soda is used as raw materials or process chemicals
for a wide range of downstream products, such as plastics, pharmaceuticals, solvents, synthetic fabrics,
adhesives, dyes, coatings, inks, among others. It is also used in the neutralization of acidic waste streams
and the scrubbing of acidic components from off-gases.
Small volume applications for caustic soda include household cleaning products, water treatment,
cleaners for beverage bottles, home soap making, among others.

Chlorine (Cl2)

Chlorine is widely used in making many everyday products and essential for a healthy human life.
It is vital for water disinfection for producing safe drinking water all over the world. Chlorine is an
important chemical for water purification in water treatment plants. Chlorine in water is highly effective as
a disinfectant against Escherichia coli and used to kill bacteria and other microbes in public swimming
pools.
Eighty-five percent of medicines either contain chlorine or use chlorine in the production
process.Chlorine is also extensively used in the production of paper products, dyestuffs, textiles, petroleum
products, antiseptics, insecticides, food, solvents, paints, plastics, and many other consumer products.
 Sodium Hypochlorite (NaClO)

Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) is formed when caustic soda (NaOH) and chlorine (Cl2) react. ASC delivers
sodium hypochlorite to customers in the form of 10% solution.
It is widely used bleaching, disinfecting and oxidizing agents.Sodium hypochlorite is widely used
in swimming pools to disinfect the water and to oxidize pollutants in the water.
Sodium hypochlorite is also commonly used in the pretreatment of cooling water to prevent
biofouling in a cooling water system which involves piping, heat exchangers, cooling towers, etc. Drinking
water and process water are produced from ground water or surface water, which can contain large amounts
of micro-organisms. The water needs to be disinfected to prevent the spreading of pathogenic micro-
organisms and to prevent biofouling in general.
In many developed countries sodium hypochlorite is used for the disinfection of drinking
water.Sodium hypochlorite is also widely used in waste water treatment. After most impurities in waste
water have been removed by other technical means such as biofiltration, just before being discharged,
wastewater is treated with sodium hypochlorite.Cleaning and disinfection procedures using sodium
hypochlorite is a well known practice in the food, beverage, and dairy industry.
Sodium hypochlorite is used in many products for household cleaning and disinfection. Other uses
are industrial cleaning (food and beverage industry, kitchens and catering), and industrial laundry cleaning
(washing of clothing for hospitals and in some factories). In the textile and pulp & paper industries, sodium
hypochlorite is often used for bleaching purposes.
Hypochlorite oxidation of starch is one of the most useful reactions developed for the modification
of starch. Oxidation introduces an increasing number of carbonyl and carboxyl groups into the starch
molecules, which in turn cause changes in the chemical and physical properties.

Hydrochloric Acid (HCl)

Hydrochloric acid is a co-product in the process of EDC cracking. Some of hydrochloric acid is
used in Oxy-Chlorination process to produce EDC while the rest is delivered to customers in the form of
33% solution.
ASC produce high quality hydrochloric acid with applications ranging from highly demanding
applications such as pharmaceutical and food industry, for preparation of drinking water, as a raw material
for consumable products, down to more general industrial applications such as for metal pickling, ion-
exchange regeneration, raw material for the production of numerous inorganic and organic compounds, pH-
regulation and neutralisation of process streams.
 Ethylene Dichloride (EDC)

Ethylene dichloride or 1,2-dichloroethane was once called Dutch oil in honor of the Dutch scientists
who first synthesized this compound from ethylene and chlorine gases in the late 18th century. Nowadays
it is mainly used to produce vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), the major raw material for PVC production.
It is also used as an intermediate for other organic chemical compounds and as a solvent.

Vinyl Chloride Monomer (VCM)

Vinyl chloride is the organochloride with the formula CH2=CHCl. It is also called vinyl chloride
monomer, or VCM. This colourless compound is an important industrial chemical mainly used to produce
the polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Vinyl chloride is a chemical intermediate, not a final product and hence there
are no end products that use vinyl chloride in its monomer form.

Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)

Polyvinyl chloride is the third most widely produced plastic, after polyethylene and polypropylene.
Over 50% of PVC manufactured is used in construction, because it is cheap, durable, and easy to assemble.
PVC piping, first introduced in 1952, is the largest single market for PVC. Roughly half of the
world's polyvinyl chloride resin manufactured annually is used for producing pipes. Its light weight, high
strength, and low reactivity make it particularly well-suited for pipes in various municipal and industrial
applications as well as for sanitary sewer pipes. PVC is biologically and chemically resistant, making it the
plastic of choice for most household sewerage pipes and other pipe applications where corrosion would
limit the use of metal.
With the addition of impact modifiers and stabilizers, PVC becomes a popular material for window
and door frames. By adding plasticizers, it can become flexible enough to be used in cabling applications
as insulation on electric wires. PVC fabric is waterproof and commonly used in raincoats, shoes, jackets
and bags.
PVC has a long history of safe medical applications and has helped saving many patients in
intensive medical care. PVC applications in medical tubings, blood bags and a host of other applications in
medical equipments are widely acknowledged contributions of the material to mankind.