Industrial Chemicals

The industrial chemicals of Tessenderlo Group are the products and derivatives obtained from the electrolysis of brine. Chlorine and caustic soda are the most important products obtained directly from the electrolysis process.
The electrolyses units are located in Loos, near Lille in the northern part of France and in Italy, at Pieve Vergonte, north of Milan.

The chlorine resulting from the electrolysis process is used internally, for the production of ferric chloride (Loos) and for the chlorination of benzene and toluene at Pieve Vergonte. 
 
Caustic soda is used in a wide variety of applications such as alumina, in the papermaking industry, in chemicals, for water treatment and the manufacture of detergents and soaps, rayon.

The following industrial chemicals are also produced by Tessenderlo Group:

• hydrochloric acid;

• sodium hypo chlorite;

• potassium carbonate;

• sulphur derivatives (sodium sulphide and sodium hydrosulphide);

• inorganic chlorides (ammonium chloride).
  

These chlor-alkali derivatives (depending upon the type) are used in specific applications such as detergents, tanning, photographic products, food, disinfectants, cleaning products and mining (ore flotation).

Ferric chloride and aluminium chloride are the other inorganic chlorides produced by Tessenderlo Group, both used for water treatment.