INDUSTRY
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BUSINESS
Isopropyl Alcohol Output Strains Capacity Enjay is already expanding and the other producers, Shell and Carbide, may do the same Often overlooked during expansion cycles are the many low-cost additions to capacity. Isopropyl alcohol is an example. For less than $300,000 Enjay Chemical will add 80 million pounds to its isopropyl alcohol capacity at Baton Rouge, La., by next February. Conceivably, Shell Chemical and Union Carbide Chemicals, the other isopropyl alcohol producers, could do the same and are likely to do so as demand warrants. Since 1961, when output was about 1.19 billion pounds, isopropyl alcohol output has risen sharply, and the surge has brought production to 1.57 billion pounds this year. This is an average growth of 10% annually, compared to the long-established, compounded growth rate of 3.3% a year. Next year, production may well climb to at least 1.64 billion pounds with longterm projections calling for nearly 1.9 billion pounds in 1970. This swell in isopropyl alcohol production is using virtually all of rated domestic capacity, which is now 1.6 billion pounds a year. Enjay can make 400 million pounds, all at Baton Rouge. Shell has 550 million pounds of total capacity, at Dominguez, Calif., and Houston, Tex. Union Carbide's 650 million pounds of capacity is in plants at South Charleston, W.Va., Texas City, Tex., and Whiting, Ind. Expansions would normally take place under such conditions, but present producers are concerned about the prospect that another firm may enter the field. Tennessee Eastman is one candidate, since the firm consumes nearly 70 million pounds of the alcohol a year in making acetone. Also, Tennessee Eastman has propylene, the major raw material for isopropyl alcohol, available to it from Texas Eastman's Longview, Tex., plant. However, Tennessee Eastman denies that it plans to produce the alcohol and, in fact, says it expects to continue buying it from Enjay. Acetone Leads Growth. Acetone is 26
C&EN
DEC. 7, 196 4
Acetone Accounts for Surge in Isopropyl Alcohol Output Year
1955 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964* 1965* 1970*
Isopropyl Acetone Production from Alcohol Isopropyl Alcohol Production (millions of pounds)
925 1180 1189 1326 1466 1575 1640 1890
* C&EN estimates Source: U.S. Tariff
435 613 591 668 718 790 825 935
Commission
the major reason for the sharp rise in isopropyl alcohol demand. This year about 58% of total production will be used to make acetone, and most of it captively by Shell, Enjay, and Carbide. These three firms can produce between 800 and 875 million pounds of acetone yearly. Shell has about 50% of this capacity and Carbide about 3 3 % . With Tennessee Eastman's output, about 790 million pounds of acetone will be produced from isopropyl alcohol this year, ,or roughly 76% of the acetone produced domestically. Acetone has a diverse consumption pattern. It is used chiefly as a solvent in either original or derivative form. Typical derivatives include methyl isobutyl ketone and methyl isobutyl carbinol. Roughly 625 million pounds of acetone and acetone derivatives will be used as solvents this year. These products are used in paints, varnishes, lacquers, cellulose acetate, vinyl resins, and to transport acetylene in cylinders. Such solvent uses are expected to grow at about 3.5% a year for the foreseeable future. Other uses for acetone include production of bisphenol A, which, in turn, is used to make epoxy resins and polycarbonates. This outlet probably took some 25 million pounds of acetone this
year. Although this is a small part of the over-all acetone picture, it does offer growth potential. Methyl methacrylate is another growing outlet for acetone. It is used chiefly in acrylic plastics, and is likely to consume 205 million pounds of acetone this year. With acrylic plastics growing at roughly 9% a year, the outlook for acetone consumption in this outlet remains promising. Other Uses. The other uses for isopropyl alcohol range from rubbing alcohol and disinfectant to extraction solvent and chemical intermediate. It is also used as a dehydrating agent, a cooling medium for frozen foods, and a deicer for airplane propellers. It has been used as a deicing additive in gasoline, but is being displaced in this use by less expensive materials. Growth of isopropyl alcohol in uses other than acetone production should average about 3.5% between 1965 and 1970. Exports of isopropyl alcohol will probably not grow enough ,over the next few years to boost the growth pattern. Though propyl (mostly isopropyl) alcohol exports increased to 60 million pounds last year, from 20 million pounds in 1962, this year's exports may drop to 35 to 40 million. Cumene Competition. The most significant problem which isopropyl alcohol producers face today is the growing output of acetone from phenol-from-cumene processes. This year 20% of the acetone produced will come from the cumene route, and may well rise to between 25 and 30% by 1970. The primary product of the cumene process is phenol; acetone is a by-product. Nearly 40% of the .output from a phenol-from-cumene operation is acetone. The availability of this acetone has in many cases weakened the price of acetone. But the weakness in acetone prices has not been transferred to isopropyl alcohol. List prices for the alcohol have not changed since 1958. It sells for about 7 cents a pound ( delivered, tanks ).
