Industrial applications

Industrial manufacturers around the world are under pressure to meet ever stricter environmental regulations while maintaining stringent quality control. Solvay’s versatile portfolio of innovative, sustainable solutions optimize a wide range of industrial applications. 

For over 60 years, our oxygenated solvents have been tailored to a wide spectrum of industrial purposes: used for inks, paints and varnish, as well as industrial coatings and household cleaning products. Our broad portfolio includes non-toxic, biodegradable ester solvents like Solsys® and the bio-based Augeo® SL 191. The latter is a renewable alternative to petrochemical solvents that is almost odorless – making it eligible for most diverse applications. 

Ammonium bifluoride solution AMBI® is similarly known for its versatility: in metal treatment, glass processing and industrial cleaning. While our Aqueous Hydrofluoric Acid plays a crucial role in the steel manufacturing process, where it’s used to "pickle" stainless steel for impurity removal. The solution is also key in the rapidly growing photovoltaics market, where it’s the preferred choice for quartz purification. 

Through our Hydrogen Peroxide to Propylene Oxide technology mega plants in Belgium, Thailand, and Saudi Arabia, we reliably and safely produce large quantities of propylene oxide (PO). A crucial organic building block in industry, PO is used in the production of polyurethane foam, found in everything from mattresses to thermal insulation. It’s also a key component of propylene glycol, a common food and cosmetics ingredient. These cutting-edge plants significantly reduce wastewater, increase energy efficiency and lower operational costs.