a global chemical manufacturer

Phthalic Anhydride

Phthalic Anhydride (P.A.) is the backbone of Stepan's Polymer Business.  Stepan operates a world scale P.A. manufacturing facility at its ISO 9002 certified Millsdale, Illinois production site.  Stepan is a leading supplier of P.A. to the merchant market in North America, in addition to supplying internal requirements of this key raw material,.  P.A. is used in the production of plasticizers for flexible PVC.  The function of plasticizers is to make otherwise rigid plastic materials flexible.  Common applications include, wire coating and insulation, vinyl wallpaper, flexible tubing and containers for the medical industry.  Another key market for P.A. is unsaturated polyester resins.  These resins are used in the construction of boats hulls, shower stalls, marble-like vanity tops, and a wide range of other applications.

 

Alkyd resins for commercial and residential paint and coatings represent another significant end use of phthalic anhydride.  Stepan's reputation for outstanding service and high quality is well known in the industry!

 

Polyester Polyols

At Stepan, phthalic anhydride is reacted with various other molecules to produce a wide pallet of aromatic polyester polyols.  Stepan is the global leader in the production and sale of aromatic polyester polyols.  The largest end uses for Stepan polyester polyols are the PUR/PIR construction and insulation markets.  Additionally,  these products are supplied to the C.A.S.E. and flexible PUR foam industries.  The unique nature of our PA-based polyol molecules, coupled with an unsurpassed position in organic surfactants, allows Stepan to provide significant physical property enhancements for customer's end-use products.  These include improvements in cell structure and insulation value of foams, adhesion to various substrates, and hydrolytic stability of the finished PUR polymers.  Lastly, Stepan's basic position in phthalic anhydride offers a reliable raw material stream of exceptional purity.  For Stepan's customers and their customers, this translates into long term supply dependability, and consistency from lot to lot.

 

Polyurethane Systems

This is where Stepan brings all of the unique technologies together.  In providing a wide variety of two component rigid insulation systems.  Stepan has tailored  polyester polyols and surfactant technology to produce polyurethane systems that provide superior insulation, dimensional stability and flow.  Stepan is a market leader in the use of next generation blowing agents such as water and hydrocarbons.  Numerous patents have been awarded to Stepan for unique water blown technology.  Customers in the following end use markets are taking advantage of this exciting chemistry: water heaters, picnic coolers, steel entry doors, discontinuous panels, flotation and spray applied applications.

 

As the market moves away from  the use of HCFCs, Stepan is positioning customers to be the leaders in their industries with environmentally safe, energy efficient products.  In addition, Stepan systems are the market leaders in specialty military and aerospace applications.  If you have a unique specialty high performance requirement, contact Stepan for the preferred solution.