> Chevron Phillips Chemical > About Us

Industry Glossary

The definitions contained in this "Chemical Glossary" are merely generic definitions that may prove helpful to those using this Web site. They do not supercede, nor are they intended to supercede, the definitions or specifications that may apply to various technical terms as they are used in specific Chevron Phillips Chemical documents, agreements, proposals or offerings, or in Chevron Phillips Chemical or third party patents.

All [A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z]

Paraxylene	A.k.a. p-xylene, p-methyltoluene, 4-methyltoluene, 1,4-dimethylbenzene, or PX. A high volume chemical intermediate that is an isomer of xylene. Primarily used as a raw material in the manufacture of terephthalic acid (TPA), purified terephthalic acid (PTA), and dimethyl-terephthalate (DMT) used to produce polyester. Chevron Phillips Chemical is one of the largest marketers of high purity paraxylene in the world.
Pentanes Plus	A mixture of hydrocarbons, mostly pentanes and heavier, extracted from natural gas. Includes isopentane, natural gasoline, and plant condensate.
Performance fuels	Chevron Phillips Chemical Performance Fuels meet many established industry and military specifications. The company also formulates fuels designed to meet API, EPA, CARB, IP, ISO, DIN, ECE, and other specifications.
Persian Gulf	The countries that comprise the Persian Gulf are: Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
Petrochemical Feedstocks	Chemical feedstocks derived from petroleum principally for the manufacture of chemicals, synthetic rubber, and a variety of plastics. The categories reported are "Naphtha Less Than 401o F" and "Other Oils Equal To or Greater Than 401o F."
Petroleum Coke	A residue high in carbon content and low in hydrogen that is the final product of thermal decomposition in the condensation process in cracking. This product is reported as marketable coke or catalyst coke. The conversion is 5 barrels (of 42 U.S. gallons each) per short ton. Coke from petroleum has a heating value of 6.024 million Btu per barrel. *Catalyst Coke:* In many catalytic operations (e.g., catalytic cracking) carbon is deposited on the catalyst, thus deactivating the catalyst. The catalyst is reactivated by burning off the carbon, which is used as a fuel in the refining process. This carbon or coke is not recoverable in a concentrated form. *Marketable Coke:* Those grades of coke produced in delayed or fluid cokers which may be recovered as relatively pure carbon. This “green” coke may be sold as is or further purified by calcining.
Petroleum Products	Petroleum products are obtained from the processing of crude oil (including lease condensate), natural gas, and other hydrocarbon compounds. Petroleum products include unfinished oils, liquefied petroleum gases, pentanes plus, aviation gasoline, motor gasoline, naphtha-type jet fuel, kerosene-type jet fuel, kerosene, distillate fuel oil, residual fuel oil, petrochemical feedstocks, special naphthas, lubricants, waxes, petroleum coke, asphalt, road oil, still gas, and miscellaneous products.
Phenolics	A class of thermoset resins made by the condensation of phenol or phenol-containing compounds with aldehydes such as acetaldehyde or formaldehyde.
Pipeline (Petroleum)	Crude oil and product pipelines used to transport crude oil and petroleum products respectively, (including interstate, intrastate, and intracompany pipelines) within the 50 States and the District of Columbia.
Plant Condensate	One of the natural gas liquids, mostly pentanes and heavier hydrocarbons, recovered and separated as liquids at gas inlet separators or scrubbers in processing plants.
Plasticizers	Compounds added to high molecular weight polymers to give them flexibility, softness, and stretch. Plasticizers can be added mechanically at the compounding or shaping stage or chemically by co-polymerization.
Polyalphaolefins	A.k.a. PAO. A synthetic hydrocarbon widely used for high-quality synthetic lubricants and hydraulic fluid, having excellent lubricity and oxidative stability, first developed commercially by Gulf Oil Products Co., now Chevron Phillips Chemical Co. LP.
Polymer	A large molecule formed by chemical reaction of one or more lower molecular weight reagents of five or more several identical combining units (monomers).
Polymerization	A chemical reaction, typically catalytic in nature in which monomers and possibly co-monomers are reacted to form a high molecular weight material. It can occur spontaneously or by introduction of reactive substances.
Polypropylene	A.k.a. PP. Found in everything from flexible and rigid packaging to fibers and large molded parts for automotive and consumer articles, polypropylene is a low-density plastic.
Polystyrene	A.k.a. PS. A versatile plastic derived from styrene that can be produced as foam or rigid packaging. Chevron Phillips Chemical produces and markets general-purpose polystyrene for use in containers, lids, cups, and other applications.
Polysulfides	In addition to their use as catalyst sulfidation agents, polysulfides are commonly used in the formulation of lubricant additives for extreme pressure functionality. Chevron Phillips Chemical’s polysulfides are of the general formula RSnR, where R is a linear or branched alkyl group and n = 3-5. The name polysulfides also refers to substances of general structure (R-S-R-S-R)n where R is an alkyl group. From this molecule class, Chevron Phillips Chemical offers only one product: Ryton® polyphenylene sulfide.
PPS	See Ryton® polyphenylene sulfide.
Processing Gain	The volumetric amount by which total output is greater than input for a given period of time. This difference is due to the processing of crude oil into products which, in total, have a lower specific gravity than the crude oil processed.
Processing Loss	The volumetric amount by which total refinery output is less than input for a given period of time. This difference is due to the processing of crude oil into products which, in total, have a higher specific gravity than the crude oil processed.
Product Supplied, Crude Oil	Crude oil burned on leases and by pipelines as fuel.
Products Supplied	Approximately represents consumption of petroleum products because it measures the disappearance of these products from primary sources, i.e., refineries, natural gas processing plants, blending plants, pipelines, and bulk terminals. In general, product supplied of each product in any given period is computed as follows: field production, plus refinery production, plus imports, plus unaccounted for crude oil, (plus net receipts when calculated on a PAD District basis), minus stock change, minus crude oil losses, minus refinery inputs, minus exports.
Propane	A normally gaseous straight-chain hydrocarbon. It is a colorless paraffinic gas that boils at a temperature of - 43.67 degrees Fahrenheit. It is extracted from natural gas or refinery gas streams. It includes all products designated in ASTM Specification D1835 and Gas Processors Association Specifications for commercial propane and HD-5 propane.
Propylene	Propylene is an olefin molecule of chemical formula C₃H₆produced from natural gas liquids and refinery streams in steam crackers. Chevron Phillips Chemical uses propylene internally to manufacture polyethylene, polypropylene, alpha olefins, and styrene and sells it to external customers who produce these and other materials such as polyester, acrylics, ethylene glycol antifreeze, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), propylene oxide, oxo alcohols, and isopropanol.
PTA	Purified terephthalic acid (TPA).
Purity	A chemical product characteristic measured as 100% minus the sum of impurities proscribed in a given specification.
Pyrolysis	A process in which high heat alone (i.e. without oxygen) is used to transform one compound into one or more lower molecular weight materials.
Pyrolysis gasoline	A.k.a. pygas. A by-product of ethylene production used as a source for benzene.