过程装备与控制工程专业英语翻译11.docVIP

Reading Material 11 Chemical Industry 1. Definition of the Chemical Industry At the turn of the century there had been little difficulty in defining what constituted the chemical industry since only a very limited range of products was manufactured and these were clearly chemicals, e.g., alkali, sulfuric acid. At present, however, many thousands of chemicals are produced, from raw materials like crude oil through (in some cases) many intermediates to products which may be used directly as consumer goods, or readily converted into them. The difficulty comes in deciding at which point in this sequence the particular operation ceases to be part of the chemical industry’s sphere of activities. To consider a specific example to illustrate this dilemma, emulsion paints may contain poly (vuby1 chloride)/poly (viny1 acetate). Clearly, synthesis of viny1 chloride (or acetate) and its polymerization ate chemical activities. However, if formulation and mixing of the paint, including the polymer, is carried out by a branch of the multinational chemical companies which manufactured the ingredients, is this still part of the chemical industry or does it now belong in the decorating industry? It is therefore apparent that, because office diversity of operations and close links on many areas with other industries, there is no simple definition of the chemical industry. Instead each official body which collects and publishes statistics on manufacturing industry will have its definition as to which operations are classified as “the chemical industry. It is important to bear these in mind when comparing statistical information which is derived from several sources. The major chemical companies are truly multinational and operate their sales and marketing activities in most of the countries of the world, and they also have manufacturing units in a number of countries. This international outlook for operations, or globalization, is a growing trend within chemical industry, with com