CHEMICAL & ENGINEERING
NEWS VOLUME
4i,
NUMBER
25
T h e Chemical W o r l d T h i s W e e k
24, 1963
JUNE
Celanese Expands Acetyl Plants in Texas Capacities will be increased for acetic acid at Bishop and Pampa sites, and for acetaldehyde at Bay City Celanese Chemical is expanding all three of its plants in Texas. The expansions, combined with productivity increases which have already been achieved over the past 15 months, will increase the company's capacity for acetyl chemicals by 200 million pounds per year. By early 1964, when the three-plant expansion program is complete, Celanese will be able to produce over 700 million pounds of acetyl chemicals at its three Texas sites. According to James H. Worth, president of Celanese Chemical, half of the increased capacity will come from an expansion of acetyl facilities at Bishop, Pampa, and Bay City, Tex. The additional 100 million pound increase has already been realized from process improvements at the three plants. These improvements, Mr. Worth says, were provided by improved instrumentation, computers which provide continuous process control, and what he calls "a better understanding of process variables provided by computer studies." Largest Acetic Acid Plant. Here's how the expansions line up. Celanese has recently completed a 30 million pound acetic acid expansion at the Bishop plant, its original unit. This addition raises acetic acid capacity there to an estimated 210 million pounds per year. The Pampa plant, already the country's largest acetic acid plant, has a 40 million pound expansion program in progress. When it is completed by the end of this year, it will increase acetic acid capacity there to 330 million pounds a year. Meanwhile, in Bay City, where the company's newest chemical plant is located, an expansion program that
WACKER ACETALDEHYDE. The Bay City, Tex., acetaldehyde plant of Celanese Chemical, will have a 30 million pounds a year capacity increase
will increase acetaldehyde capacity there by 30 million pounds is under way. Estimated capacity of the unit when it is finished in early 1964 will be about 160 million pounds. This will be the first expansion of the Bay City plant, which came on stream in August of last year. The Bay City facility adds tremendously to Celanese's versatility in its line of
more than 30 acetyl chemicals. The plant uses the Wacker process, which combines ethylene with air in the presence of a catalyst. The process is specific for acetaldehyde. The Pampa plant uses a liquid phase oxidation process, using air and heat with butane and pentane as raw materials. At the Bishop plant, the process uses vapor phase oxidation using air JUNE
2 4, 1963
C&EN
23
and heat, with propane, butane, and isobutane as the raw materials. Celanese developed the processes used at Pampa and Bishop; the Wacker process used at Bay City is licensed from Aldehyd G.m.b.H., a company owned jointly by the German chemical firms Farbwerke Hoechst and Wacker Chemie. Celanese is the first company in the U.S. to use the process. Celanese also makes 2-ethylhexanol and n-butanol at the Bay City plant. The process uses acetaldehyde as the starting material, with crotonaldehyde and butyraldehyde as intermediate products. Two-Step Wacker Process. Celanese uses a two-step version of the Wacker process at Bay City. In the first step, copper chloride in aqueous solution, along with a small amount of palladium chloride, is oxidized to the cupric state. Then ethylene is added, and is oxidized to acetaldehyde, which dissolves in the water. Crude acetaldehyde is flashed from solution and purified by distillation. The catalyst solution is recycled to be regenerated by oxidizing the copper. Industry observers believe that ethylene oxidation takes place under relatively mild conditions—about 300° F. and 170 p.s.i.a. However, its license agreement prevents Celanese from revealing details of the process. Cost of the three-plant expansion program in Texas wasn't revealed, except that it is a "multimillion dollar program." However, Mr. Worth explains that the expansion was prompted by "a steady growth in external sales of basic acetyl chemicals as well as rapidly rising demand for our own derivative products throughout the Free World." In addition to acetyl chemicals, Celanese is also a major producer of formaldehyde, methanol, and many of their derivatives. The company estimates that its total current production of basic chemicals from petroleum resources is approaching 2 billion pounds annually and notes that about 80% of this amount is sold externally. The balance is used by Celanese internally. Last year Celanese Chemical contributed $63.9 million to the Celanese Corp.'s total sales of $317.1 million. That puts chemicals sales last year 22% ahead of the 1961 level of $52.3 million. 24
C&EN
JUNE
24,
1963
New Canadian Laws Under Industry Study U.S. chemical firms reluctant to pass judgment on Canadian tax proposals without thorough study The U.S. chemical industry has little to say about Canada's proposal to encourage greater Canadian ownership of manufacturing and other operations based in the country. Firms contacted by C&EN point out that the situation is under review. Probably the biggest surprise in the Canadian move is the action by Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson's government. It was felt by many that this government would be more liberal than the preceding government of
Lester B. Pearson
Curtailing foreign investment
Prime Minister John Diefenbaker. The latter commented often about American control of Canadian industry and the few strong moves to curb American interests. The New Proposals. The most important proposal in the new Canadian plan is to levy a 30% tax on large stock transactions by foreign interest. It applies to sales by a Canadian company of all or a large part of its stock on a Canadian exchange. It does not apply if these sales are less than $50,000 a day and to one buyer. This measure is calculated apparently
to curtail foreign interests from investing too heavily in Canadian firms. Few American-controlled firms are listed on Canadian stock exchanges. Du Pont of Canada and Canadian Chemical Co. (Celanese) are two examples. Both are 82% owned by the parent American companies. Other proposals mentioned by the Canadians include a change in the withholding tax provisions on dividends. Under the new plan, withholding tax on dividends will be reduced from 15% to 10% on firms which are at least 2 5 % Canadianowned. This reduction would be immediate. But, firms which are more than 25% owned by foreign companies will be assessed 20% instead of 15%. This will go into effect Jan. 1, 1965. However, refunds will be made if the company is at least 2 5 % Canadian-owned by January 1967. About two years ago, the withholding tax was increased from 5% to 15%. The new tax proposals were presented to the Canadian Parliament by Walter L. Gordon, Finance Minister. He explained that 57% of Canadian manufacturing, 75% of the oil and natural gas industry, and 6 1 % of mining are owned by outside interests. Over the past decade, Canadians have paid out in interest and dividends $4.2 billion more than they have received. American interest in Canada is large. Chemical investment is rated over $500 million and trade is near $300 million a year. Virtually every well-known U.S. chemical or chemical process firm is represented by manufacturing facilities. These include Allied Chemical, Atlas Chemical, Borden, Colgate-Palmolive, American Cyanamid, W. R. Grace, Dow Chemical, Du Pont, Monsanto, Pennsalt, Procter & Gamble, Reichhold, Rohm & Haas, and Union Carbide. These firms have little comment in reference to the new tax proposals. Celanese explains that it is still studying the situation. Allied points out that the new proposals are being reviewed and Dow feels that the new proposals will have an effect on its operations there but that it is premature to make any comment now.
