NOVA Chemicals Corporation muscles into a long line of plastic products. The company makes ethylene, polyethylene, and performance styrenics used in the manufacture of plastic and foam products. Applications include packaging, plastic bags, appliances, electronics, housewares, and plastic pipe. Through its INEOS NOVA joint venture (with INEOS), the company was one of the world's largest producers of styrene monomer and styrenic polymers. However, in 2010 INEOS announced it was buying out NOVA's 50% share of INEOS NOVA in favor of a new venture with BASF SE. The US and Canada account for 80% of NOVA's sales. It's owned by Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Co., or IPIC.

TPC Group Inc. produces specialized lines of chemical products to chemical and petroleum based companies worldwide. The company offers C4 processing products, including butadiene, which is used to produce synthetic rubber; butene-1x that is used in the manufacture of plastic resins, fuel additives, and synthetic alcohols; and raffinates and methyl tertiary butyl ether, which are used in gasoline blend stock formations. It also provides performance chemicals comprising isobutylene that is used in the production of specialty rubbers, lubricant additives, detergents, and coatings; polyisobutylenes, which are used in the production of fuel and lube additives, caulks, adhesives, sealants, and packaging; diisobutylene that is used in the manufacture of surfactants, plasticizers, and resins; and propylene derivatives, such as nonene and tetramer, which are used as intermediates in the production of plasticizers, lube oil additives, surfactants, antioxidants, and other performance products. The TPC Group Inc. was formerly known as Texas Petrochemicals Inc. and changed its name to TPC Group Inc. in January 2010. TPC Group was founded in 1943 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Hollingsworth & Vose Company manufactures products for engine filtration, air and liquid filtration, and battery separators using nonwoven materials. It also makes advanced composites as well as technical, filter, and specialty papers. The company's engine and industrial filtration products are made to perform in harsh environments and are used in automotive air, automotive lubrication, diesel, fuel, hydraulic, oil, and other specialty filtration applications. Hollingsworth & Vose's battery separators are made with uniform pore structure, chemical stability, and high wicking and absorbency. The company has plants in Germany, the UK, and the US.

Ashland Aqualon Functional Ingredients manufactures chemicals that add desired traits to products from food to construction materials. An Ashland subsidiary, the company produces both water-soluble and solvent-soluble polymers (mostly derived from natural raw materials) that add functionality such as thickening, water-retention, binding, and emulsifying capabilities. It also makes wood and gum rosin resins for adhesives, food and beverages, and construction materials. Ashland Aqualon's customers include makers of coatings, oil field chemicals, paper, pharmaceuticals, and personal care products. The company had been a part of Hercules Incorporated until Ashland acquired Hercules in 2008 and rebranded Aqualon.

HELM is in control of its own ship. A marketer and distributor of chemicals, the company's products include fertilizers, insecticides, additives, pharmaceuticals, animal and human nutrients, and plastics. Founded at the turn of the last century and based in Germany -- with about 60% of its sales coming from Europe -- HELM has operations in more than 30 countries in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North America.

Ashland Hercules Water Technologies will get your water clean even if it means tossing some chemicals into it. The company offers both chemical and non-chemical products that help keep industrial and commercial processing facilities and equipment flowing freely and working efficiently. It produces water treatment additives, polymers, and surfactants; treatments for boiler and water cooling systems; and cleaning chemicals for the marine industry. It also serves customers worldwide in the food processing, mining, pulp and paper, and wastewater industries. Ashland Hercules Water Technologies is a business unit of Ashland, which expanded it greatly with the 2008 acquisition of Hercules.

General Chemical Industrial Products makes soda, but don't be tempted to take a drink. The company produces soda ash, which is a raw ingredient in the manufacture of everything from glass to soap and detergent to textiles. General Chemical's lone production facility and mine are located in Wyoming; the company owns 75% of the facility, with glass container manufacturer Owens-Illinois owning the rest. In 2008 General Chemical acquired the mica production assets of Zemex. Soon after that deal, Tata Chemicals bought the company for about $1 billion, at which point Zemex was spun off to General Chemical's shareholders.

Whether it flies, bulldozes, or hauls golfers, Arrow-Magnolia International has something that cleans it. The company makes about 400 chemical cleaners that it sells under its own brands; it also distributes nonchemical janitorial supplies. Its products include chemicals used in construction (concrete and rust removers), government engineering (street and equipment cleaners), aviation (carbon and dirt removers), and golf course maintenance. Arrow-Magnolia makes more than half of its products in-house and sells them through independent representatives and a dozen distributors. An investment group led by Tanya Tippeconnic-Shaw has owned Arrow-Magnolia since 2005.

Promoted by Grasim Industries Ltd, India and Local Thai entrepreneurs, Thai Rayon was incorporated in 1974. Thai Rayon is the pioneer as well as sole manufacturer of viscose staple fibre (VSF) in Thailand and is listed on the Thailand Stock Exchange since 1984. Thai Rayon commenced production in 1976 with a production capacity of 9,125 MT per annum and currently has capacity to produce 140,000 MT per annum of VSF. Thai Rayon has the capability to produce third generation cellulosic fibre - modal fibre, besides regular VSF.With its five flexible VSF production lines, Thai Rayon caters to the demands of both textile and non-woven applications, producing VSF varieties in the range of 0.8 to 5.0 denier, staple lengths in the range of 32 mm to 101 mm, luster of bright bleach, semi-dull or full-dull, and also chlorine –free and anti –bacterial applications. Almost two third of Thai Rayon's VSF production is directly exported to more than 20 countries worldwide. The VSF marketed under the brand 'Birla Cellulose' meets the stringent quality requirement of customers spanning six continents from Middle East to Europe and United States to Asia Pacific.

Founded in 1935 as a maker of caustic soda, Tosoh (a Japanese abbreviation of oriental soda) still produces caustic soda but has expanded into a number of other areas. Today Tosoh's three core chemicals businesses -- petro-, basic, and specialties -- account for roughly equal portions of sales. The company's basic chemicals include polyvinyl chloride (PVC), vinyl chloride monomer (VCM), and chlorine. Its petrochemicals include olefins and aromatics such as benzene, toluene, and ethylene. Tosoh has been building up its higher-margin specialty chemicals like ethylene amines and specialty materials such as quartz. The Tosoh Corporation company has more than 140 affiliates worldwide but gets about 90% of sales from Japan.

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