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Oil, Gas & Mining vocabulary · Refining & Petrochemicals

Petrochemical

Meaning in oil, gas & mining, with examples

/ˌpetroʊˈkemɪkəl/nounCommon term

In oil, gas & mining, petrochemical means: A chemical made from oil or natural gas, such as ethylene, propylene or benzene, used to make plastics, fibres, fertilisers and many other products.

In Turkish: petrokimyasal ürün, petrokimya

How it is used

Usually plural as a noun (petrochemicals) and very common as an adjective: petrochemical plant, petrochemical complex, petrochemical industry. Many refineries are integrated with petrochemical units, so part of their output goes to chemicals instead of fuels.

Example sentences

  1. Aliağa, near İzmir, is home to Turkey's main petrochemical complex.

  2. Demand for petrochemicals is growing faster than demand for transport fuels.

Common collocations

  • petrochemical plant
  • petrochemical complex
  • petrochemical industry
  • petrochemical products
  • refineryAn industrial plant where crude oil is heated, separated and chemically changed to make products such as gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, LPG and asphalt.
  • feedstockThe raw material fed into a refinery unit or chemical plant to be processed, for example crude oil for a refinery or naphtha for a petrochemical plant.
  • crackingA refining process that breaks large, heavy hydrocarbon molecules into smaller, lighter ones, turning low-value heavy oil into more gasoline, diesel and other products.
  • downstreamDescribing the last stage of the oil and gas business: refining crude oil, then distributing and selling fuels and other products to customers.

More terms: Refining & Petrochemicals

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