Updated to mid-November 2009
European market review by Julia Meehan, ICIS pricing
European fourth-quarter cyclohexane contract delta was agreed at €126/tonne, up €6 on the third quarter.
Demand during the period mid-August to mid-November was healthy in downstream caprolactam and adipic acid. However, the market remained sufficiently supplied owing to the arrival of imports from the US and Asia.
In October, the benzene contract price and cyclohexane delta yielded an outright ex-works free delivered (FD) price of €631/tonne. In November, benzene increase by €42/tonne which resulted in an ex-works price of €673/tonne.
US market review by Ryan Hickman, ICIS pricing
US cyclohexane prices dropped sharply from August through to October on falling benzene contract prices, but turned upward in November.
Benzene contract values in the US Gulf fell by a total of 105 cents/gal or 29% from August to October, but regained nearly 24% of this loss in November.
Downstream, cyclohexane prices went from 339-345 cents/gal in August to 268-274 cents/gal in September and retreated to 253-259 cents/gal in October.
Cyclohexane values tracked stronger energy prices upstream in November as prices jumped back into the mid-to-high 270s cents/gal.
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Cyclohexane
Uses and Outlook
Nearly all cyclohexane consumed in the production of cyclohexanol and cyclohexanone, which are then used mainly to make adipic acid and caprolactam respectively. Adipic acid accounts for 60% of cyclohexane demand and is used to make nylon 6,6. Around 75% of global caprolactam is used in nylon 6 manufacture.
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Cyclohexane
Process Technologies
Traditionally, cyclohexane was produced by fractional distillation of naphtha but the separation is difficult because of a large number of components with similar boiling points. The bulk of commercial production is based on the catalytic hydrogenation of benzene because of its simplicity and high efficiency. The reaction can be carried out using liquid or vapour-phase methods in the presence of a highly dispersed catalyst or in a catalytic fixed bed.
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