chemical products

In chemistry, chemical products are substance formed as a result of chemical reactions. In the reaction, the raw materials called reactants interact with each other. After a high-energy transition state (reaching the activation energy of the reaction), the chemical bonds between the reactants break and rearrange to produce one or more chemical products.

Products in chemical equations
When the chemical equation is written, the reactants are listed on the left, followed by the reaction arrow, the final by-products. The product is always written on the right-hand side of the reaction, even though it's reversible.

A plus B goes to C plus D

Where A and B are the reactants, and C and D are the products.

In a chemical reaction, atoms rearrange themselves, but they are not created or destroyed. The number and species of atoms on the reactant side of the equation are the same as the number and species of atoms in the products.

Chemical change and physical change
The formation of products distinct from the reactants is the difference between the chemical and physical changes of a substance. In a chemical change, the chemical formula of at least one of the reactants and products is different. For example, the physical change in the melting of water into a liquid can be expressed by the following equation:

H 2 O (S) →H 2 O (L).

The reactants and the chemical products have the same formula.

A product is a species formed by a chemical reaction. During a chemical reaction, the reactants are converted to products after a high-energy transition state. This process results in the depletion of the reactants. It can be a spontaneous reaction, a catalyst that reduces the energy of the transition state, or a medium that provides a solvent for the chemical environment necessary for the reaction to take place. When expressed in chemical equations, even in the case of reversible reactions, the products are usually agreed on the right-hand side. The properties of the products (such as energy) help to determine several characteristics of a chemical reaction, such as whether the reaction is active or active. In addition, the properties of the products make it easier to extract and purify after chemical reactions, especially if the material states of the products are different from those of the reactants. Reactants are the molecular materials used to produce chemical reactions. Atoms are not created or destroyed. Materials are reactive, reactants rearrange themselves in chemical reactions.

After the 2021 Spring Festival, the chemical market conditions in China and other celebrated festivals in Asia will be different from previous years.

Although China is about to celebrate the Lunar New Year (February 11 BBB 0 17), companies and factories will resume operations after the Spring Festival than expected due to an increase in cases of the northern coronavirus in some cities and regions. , imposed blockades and promoted millions of migrant workers to celebrate the New Year on the spot.

The problem is that it remains to be seen how much demand for plastics recovers in Asia, as companies are back in business earlier than in the past few years. In previous years, Chinese factories usually closed for two to four weeks during the Chinese New Year holiday.

"Most small and medium-sized chemical plastic processors in China will gradually resume production after February 26. With some workers not returning home this year, demand could recover sooner than usual. This year's Labour shortage may not be severe. Amy Yu, senior analyst at ICIS, said.

The new trend for companies to quickly get back to work after the Lunar New Year holiday is a good thing for the Chinese economy, which has expanded manufacturing for 11 straight months and met demand for plastics across Asia.

Rhian O'Connor, senior analyst at ICIS, said: "Last year, a lot of the chemical demand in China came from exports, particularly for pandemic related supplies such as face masks, laptop computers and home office screens." "With blockades in Europe and other Western countries, some of that demand is likely to continue this year."

"Shopping patterns have changed and online shopping is increasing. This is unlikely to change in the future, but it could benefit packaging polymers (such as shrink and stretch films) and more durable products (such as polymers used in electronics)." O'Connor added.

The need for vaccines will benefit specialized applications such as polypropylene for syringes. But it is still only a small fraction of total demand, "he said.

The slowdown in China's manufacturing activity in January was inevitably reflected in the fall in the official PMI to 51.3 from 51.9 in December, due to the combined impact of the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday and the resurgence of the epidemic.

As a result of the pandemic's impact on demand, companies said growth in production and new orders had slowed, while new export jobs fell, the report said.

"China's domestic demand should have been beaten in the first quarter. The resurgence of an epidemic in some areas has limited travel plans. This may affect sales during the Spring Festival holiday." O 'Connor believes.

The biggest merger in the history of the chemical industry may have been born

The biggest merger with a market chemical capitalization of $190b and $164b for Chevron, the combined size would be $350b. It would be the world's second-largest oil company by market capitalization and output, behind Aramco and Saudi Arabia. Aramco has a market capitalization off about $1.8 trillion. At pre-outbreak levels, the combined company could produce about 7 million barrels of oil a day.

The deal would be far bigger than the mergers of major chemical companies that took place in the late 1990s and early 2000s, including ExxonMobil, Mobil, Chevron and Texaco.

It may also be the biggest chemical corporate merger in history. Vodafone Group holds that record with its $181 billion acquisition of German company Mannesmann AG in 2000, according to Dialogue.

The oil industry completed several major acquisitions in 2020, including Chevron's $5 billion acquisition of Noble Energy Inc. And ConocoPhillips' $9.7 billion acquisition of Poncho Resources Inc.

This is a family

ExxonMobil and Chevron started out as "family". In 1911, Standard Oil Monegority founded by Rockefeller was divided into three larger Oil companies (Standard of New Jersey, Standard of New York, Standard of California) and four other original Oil companies according to the United States Anti-Trust Law. These include Mobil, ExxonMobil and Chevron.

From the mid-1940s to the mid-1970s, the seven sisters of the oil industry dominated the global oil industry. Before the 1973 oil crisis, the "seven sisters" controlled about 85% of the world's oil reserves.

What are the benefits of consolidation?

Many investors, analysts and energy executives are calling for further consolidation in the oil industry, where cost cuts and operational efficiencies will help the company weather the pandemic-induced recession and prepare for an uncertain future.

Energy analyst Paul San-key first floated the idea of combining Chevron and ExxonMobil in October. The combined company would have a market capitalization of about $300 billion and debt of about $100 billion, he said. Together, the two companies could cut $15 billion in overheads and $10 billion in annual capital spending.

Some analysts say the combination of the two companies to create the world's second largest oil company could change the global energy market.

Last year, a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia, the world's largest oil exporter, triggered a panicked plunge in international oil prices that devastated the U.S. oil industry and forced many U.S. companies to go bankrupt, lay off employees and merge.

Reuters says the price war highlights the vulnerability of U.S. oil companies. Compared with other countries, the U.S. government's ability to interfere with oil companies is limited. U.S. oil companies compete with each other and set different production targets. If the two companies merge, it would be an American oil major's best chance to compete with Saudi Arabia and other big national oil companies.

In the longer term, further consolidation in the oil industry can also prepare for future uncertainty and transformation. In response to climate change, many countries are reducing their reliance on fossil fuels.

Unlike their European peers BP and Shell, Exxon Mobil and Chevron have not made big investments in renewables, opting instead to double their investments in oil and gas projects. Both companies agree that the world will need a lot of fossil fuels in the coming decades, and that the current lack of investment in oil production will create a mismatch between supply and demand.