Catalysts, Lab Instrumentation, and Monomers
Working reference for the three “infrastructure” catalogs of a chemistry lab: (1) what catalysts you have on the shelf and what they do, (2) what instruments measure them, and (3) what monomers you use to build polymers. Three bundled Tier-3 catalogs.
All quoted prices are 2024–2026 list prices in USD, rounded; vendor SKUs / model numbers given for orderable items. SI units primary.
Part 1 — Catalyst Families
1.1 Heterogeneous hydrogenation catalysts
| Catalyst | Composition | Use case | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pd/C 5% or 10% | Pd on activated C | Most H₂ reductions: nitro, azide, benzyl, Cbz removal, alkene, alkyne | Air-sensitive when wet; pyrophoric when dry; ~$50/g (Sigma-Aldrich 205699) |
| Pd(OH)₂/C 20% (Pearlman) | Pd hydroxide on C | Cbz removal, debenzylation more efficient than Pd/C | Strem 46-1995 |
| Pt/C 5% | Pt on C | Pyridine reduction, mild C=C, nitro | More selective than Pd/C; less aromatic ring reduction |
| PtO₂ (Adams catalyst) | Pt(IV) oxide; reduces in situ to Pt(0) | Aromatic ring reduction (high pressure), oxime | Sigma 206032 |
| Rh/C 5% | Rh on C | Aromatic + heterocycle hydrogenation; ketones to alcohols | |
| Rh/Al₂O₃ | Rh on alumina | Same; cleaner aromatic reduction | |
| Ru/C 5% | Ru on C | Aromatic + amide | |
| Raney Ni (W2, W6, W7) | Ni-Al alloy leached with NaOH | Desulfurization, nitrile → amine, ketone → alcohol; cheap | Pyrophoric; W2 most common; Aldrich 510092 |
| Lindlar catalyst | Pd/CaCO₃ poisoned with Pb(OAc)₂ + quinoline | Alkyne → cis-alkene (Z-selective half-reduction) | Sigma 62141 |
| Rosenmund catalyst | Pd/BaSO₄ poisoned | Acyl chloride → aldehyde (stops at CHO) | Older method |
| Cu chromite | Cu·Cu₂Cr₂O₅ | Hydrogenolysis ester → alcohol (high P, T) | Adkins; specialty |
| Fe-K₂O on Al₂O₃ (Haber-Bosch) | Fe magnetite + promoters | N₂ + H₂ → NH₃ at 400–500 °C, 200 bar | Industrial only |
| Co-Mo / Ni-Mo on Al₂O₃ | sulfided | Hydrodesulfurization (HDS) of petroleum | Refining only |
1.2 Homogeneous hydrogenation and reduction
| Catalyst | Structure | Use case |
|---|---|---|
| Wilkinson’s [RhCl(PPh₃)₃] | Rh(I) | Homogeneous H₂ of unhindered alkenes, terminal preferred over internal; preserves CHO, NO₂ |
| Crabtree’s [Ir(cod)(PCy₃)(py)]PF₆ | Ir(I) cationic | H₂ of hindered + tri-/tetra-substituted alkenes; directed hydrogenation |
| Ir(P,N) Pfaltz/Andersson | various | Asymmetric H₂ of unfunctionalized alkenes |
| Schrock-Osborn [Rh(diphos)] | Rh(I) cation | Asymmetric H₂ of enamides (legacy) |
| Noyori Ru-BINAP (RuCl₂[(S)-BINAP]) | Ru(II) chelate with binaphthyl-diphos | Asymmetric H₂ β-ketoester → β-hydroxyester; 96–99% ee; Nobel 2001 |
| Noyori-Ikariya Ru-TsDPEN | Ru(II) tosylated diamine | Transfer H₂ of ketone (HCO₂H/Et₃N or iPrOH) → chiral alcohol |
| Bullock Mn (Mn(I) pincer) | Mn(CO)₂(L) | Earth-abundant alternative to Ru for ester reduction |
| Beller / Milstein Fe pincer | Fe(II) PNP / PNN | Hydrogenation of esters, ketones with Earth-abundant metal |
| L-selectride Li[BHsBu₃] | borohydride | Bulky hydride; 1,2-reduction (vs 1,4 of enones) |
| LiAlH₄ | aluminate | Strong hydride; esters → alcohols, amides → amines |
| NaBH₄ | borohydride | Aldehyde/ketone → alcohol; cheap |
| NaBH₃CN | cyanoborohydride | Reductive amination (pH 5–7 selective) |
| NaB(OAc)₃H | triacetoxyborohydride | Reductive amination (milder than NaBH₃CN) |
| DIBAL-H ((iBu)₂AlH) | aluminum hydride | Ester → aldehyde at −78 °C (stops at hemiacetal); CN → CHO |
| 9-BBN | dialkylborane | Hydroboration; Suzuki coupling partner |
| Catecholborane HBcat | Hydroboration | |
| Pinacolborane HBpin | Hydroboration, Miyaura borylation |
1.3 Cross-coupling — Pd, Ni, Cu
Pd-based pre-catalysts and ligands
| Catalyst / ligand | Use |
|---|---|
| Pd(PPh₃)₄ tetrakis(triphenylphosphine)palladium(0) | Suzuki, Stille, Negishi (classical); air-sensitive |
| Pd(PPh₃)₂Cl₂ | Heck, Sonogashira (with CuI) |
| Pd(OAc)₂ + PPh₃ or other ligand | General; in-situ catalyst |
| Pd₂(dba)₃ (tris(dibenzylideneacetone)dipalladium(0)) | Buchwald-Hartwig amination, allylic alkyl |
| PdCl₂(dppf) ([1,1′-bis(diphenylphosphino)ferrocene]dichloropalladium) | Suzuki; bulky bidentate stabilizes Pd(0) |
| PdCl₂(dppe), PdCl₂(dppp) | Coupling variants |
| Pd-PEPPSI (Organ) | NHC pyridine pre-cats; commercial Pd-PEPPSI-IPr / IPent (Sigma 669032 etc.) |
Buchwald monodentate phosphine ligands (J. F. Buchwald, MIT)
| Ligand | Common acronym | Use |
|---|---|---|
| 2-(Dicyclohexylphosphino)biphenyl | CyJohnPhos | Aryl Cl coupling early |
| 2-(Di-tert-butylphosphino)biphenyl | JohnPhos | Sterically bulky Negishi |
| SPhos | 2-Dicyclohexylphosphino-2′,6′-dimethoxybiphenyl | Suzuki of aryl chlorides |
| XPhos | 2-Dicyclohexylphosphino-2′,4′,6′-triisopropylbiphenyl | Suzuki, Buchwald amination |
| RuPhos | 2-Dicyclohexylphosphino-2′,6′-diisopropoxybiphenyl | Suzuki, Negishi of sp³ |
| tBuXPhos | More electron-rich | |
| BrettPhos | 2-(Dicyclohexylphosphino)-3,6-dimethoxy-2′,4′,6′-triisopropyl-1,1′-biphenyl | Amination of aryl Cl with primary amine |
| RockPhos | Etherification, C-O | |
| MePhos | ||
| AlPhos | Difficult substrates | |
| cataCXium A (Beller) | di(1-adamantyl)-n-butylphosphine | Suzuki of aryl Cl very active |
| MorDalPhos (Hartwig) | Buchwald amination | |
| Pd-G3 / G4 precatalysts | Methanesulfonate / mesylate of Pd-amine + ligand | Bench-stable; one-pot activation by base; Sigma “G3” series |
Ni cross-coupling catalysts (resurgence post-2010 photoredox)
| Catalyst | Use |
|---|---|
| Ni(cod)₂ bis(cyclooctadiene)nickel(0) | sp³-sp² coupling, alkyl halides |
| NiCl₂(dppe), NiCl₂(dppp) | Kumada (early) |
| NiCl₂(glyme) + ligand | Doyle photoredox-Ni dual catalysis |
| NiBr₂·3H₂O, NiI₂ | Mild precat; Weix, Reisman cross-electrophile coupling |
| Ni-NHC (Glorius) | C-N, C-H |
Cu catalysis
| Catalyst | Use |
|---|---|
| CuI | Sonogashira (alkyne coupling), Ullmann amination + ligand (proline, 1,10-phenanthroline, DMEDA), CuAAC (click) |
| CuBr·SMe₂ | Cuprate prep, conjugate addition |
| Cu(OAc)₂ | Chan-Lam (boronic acid + amine), Glaser, click (with reductant) |
| CuSO₄ + Na ascorbate | Click chemistry CuAAC (Sharpless 2002; Meldal 2002; Nobel 2022) |
| Cu(OTf)₂ | Lewis acid; oxidation |
| (Imes)CuCl | Newer Cu-NHC for C-H |
1.4 Olefin metathesis
| Catalyst | Year | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Grubbs I (Cl₂(PCy₃)₂Ru=CHPh) | 1995 | Cross-metathesis, ring-closing of simple alkenes |
| Grubbs II (Cl₂(PCy₃)(IMes or SIMes)Ru=CHPh) | 1999 | More functional-group-tolerant; type-II/III alkenes |
| Hoveyda-Grubbs II (Cl₂(SIMes)Ru=CH-o-OiPr-C₆H₄, chelating) | 2000 | Recoverable; harder substrates; commercial Hoveyda-Grubbs Catalyst® |
| Grubbs III (3,3′-pyridine variant) | 2002 | Faster initiation, fast ROMP |
| Stewart-Grubbs Z-selective (chelated, with CAACs) | 2011+ | Z-alkene selectivity; macrocycles |
| Schrock Mo catalysts (Mo(CHR)(NAr)(OR’)₂) | 1990+ | High activity, low FG tolerance; chirotopic; asymmetric |
| Materia/Umicore commercial Grubbs catalysts | Industrial scale (perfumes, pharmaceutical macrocyclics) |
Nobel Prize 2005: Schrock, Grubbs, Chauvin.
1.5 Asymmetric catalysts
Asymmetric oxidation / dihydroxylation / epoxidation
| Reaction | Catalyst | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Sharpless asymmetric epoxidation | Ti(OiPr)₄ + DET (L-(+) or D-(−)-diethyl tartrate) + tBuOOH | 1980 |
| Sharpless asymmetric dihydroxylation | OsO₄ + (DHQD)₂PHAL / (DHQ)₂PHAL / PYR | 1988 |
| Sharpless asymmetric aminohydroxylation | OsO₄ + chloramine-T + cinchona | 1996 |
| Jacobsen epoxidation | Mn(salen)·Cl ((R,R)- or (S,S)-(salen)Mn) | 1990 |
| Jacobsen hydrolytic kinetic resolution (HKR) | Co(salen)·OAc | 1997 — kinetic res. of racemic epoxide |
| Shi epoxidation | Fructose-derived chiral ketone + Oxone | 1996 |
| Katsuki Mn(salen) | 1990 |
Asymmetric C-H insertion (carbenoids)
| Catalyst | Use |
|---|---|
| Rh₂(OAc)₄ | Carbene insertion (achiral) |
| Rh₂(S-PTAD)₄ | Doyle 2000s; asymmetric C-H insertion |
| Rh₂(S-DOSP)₄ | Davies; C-H insertion / cyclopropanation |
| Rh₂(esp)₂ | Du Bois nitrene insertion |
Asymmetric C-C bond formation
| Catalyst class | Example | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Pd(0) + chiral ligand | Trost Pd + (R,R)-DACH-naphthyl | Allylic alkylation |
| Cu + PyBOX, BOX, PhBOX | Cu(OTf)₂ + (S)-BOX | Aldol, ene rxn, cyclopropanation |
| BINOL-Ti | Ti(OiPr)₄ + (R)-BINOL | Mukaiyama aldol, ene |
| Chiral phosphoric acid (CPA) | (R)-TRIP (Akiyama-Terada 2004) | Mannich, aldol, transfer hydrogenation |
| Salen-Co/Mn/Cr | Asymmetric HKR, epoxide opening |
Organocatalysts
| Catalyst class | Example | Mechanism / use | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proline | L-proline | Enamine catalysis: asymmetric aldol, Mannich | List, Lerner, Barbas 2000 (rediscovery of Hajos-Parrish-Eder-Sauer-Wiechert 1971) |
| MacMillan imidazolidinone | (S)-2-(tert-butyl)-3-methyl-imidazolidin-4-one | Iminium activation (LUMO-lowering); asymmetric Diels-Alder, conjugate addition | MacMillan 2000+ |
| Chiral phosphoric acid (CPA) | (R)-TRIP, (R)-BINOL-PA | H-bond + Brønsted acid bifunctional | Akiyama, Terada 2004 |
| Cinchona alkaloid | Quinidine, hydroquinidine, dihydroquinidine | Brønsted base + H-bond | Wynberg, Sharpless |
| Cinchona thiourea | Soós, Connon, Jacobsen | H-bond catalysis | 2003+ |
| NHC carbene (N-heterocyclic carbene) | Bode, Glorius, Chi | Umpolung (acyl anion); Stetter, benzoin | 2003+ |
| Acridinium photocatalyst Mes-Acr⁺ | Fukuzumi 2004; Nicewicz | Photoredox organocatalyst | 2010+ |
| 4CzIPN (carbazoyl-dicyanobenzene) | Adachi 2012, Zhang group | Cheap organic photoredox | 2014+ |
Nobel 2021: MacMillan + List for organocatalysis.
1.6 Photoredox catalysts
| Catalyst | Excited-state E (V) | Type | Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ru(bpy)₃Cl₂ | Eᵣₑd = +0.77, Eₒₓ = −0.81 (vs SCE) | Inorganic, ~$5/g | Mild SET; visible-light reductive cycle |
| Ru(bpy)₃(PF₆)₂ | as above | Soluble in organics | |
| Ir(ppy)₃ | Eₒₓ = −1.73, Eᵣₑd = +0.31 | Strong reductant | C-C, decarboxylative |
| [Ir(dF(CF₃)ppy)₂(dtbbpy)]PF₆ | E*ᵣₑd = +1.21 | Stronger oxidant | Oxidative quenching cycles |
| Eosin Y | Visible | Cheap organic dye | Stephenson, Yoon |
| Rose Bengal | Visible (550 nm) | Cheap | Singlet O₂ generation |
| 4CzIPN (2,4,5,6-tetrakis(carbazol-9-yl)-1,3-benzenedicarbonitrile) | Eᵣₑd = +1.35, Eₒₓ = −1.21 | Organic, no metal | Replacement for Ir in industrial use |
| Mes-Acr⁺ ClO₄⁻ (Fukuzumi acridinium) | E*ᵣₑd = +2.06 | Strong organic oxidant | C-H functionalization |
| TPT (2,4,6-triphenylpyrylium) | E*ᵣₑd = +1.9 | Strong oxidant | Single-electron oxidation |
| Riboflavin tetraacetate | Visible | Bio-inspired |
Pioneer groups: MacMillan (Princeton), Yoon (Wisconsin), Stephenson (Michigan), DiRocco (Merck), Nicewicz (UNC), Knowles (Princeton), Doyle (UCLA), Molander (Penn).
1.7 Phase-transfer catalysts (PTC)
| PTC | Structure | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Tetrabutylammonium bromide (TBAB) | Bu₄N⁺ Br⁻ | General; nucleophilic substitution in 2-phase |
| Tetrabutylammonium hydrogen sulfate (TBAHS) | Bu₄N⁺ HSO₄⁻ | Oxidation |
| Aliquat 336 | (C₈/C₁₀)₃CH₃N⁺ Cl⁻ | Liquid-liquid PTC industrial |
| Benzyltriethylammonium chloride (TEBAC) | PhCH₂Et₃N⁺ Cl⁻ | Dichlorocarbene generation (CHCl₃/NaOH) |
| 18-Crown-6 | macrocyclic polyether | K⁺ complex; activates KO-tBu, KCN, KF |
| 15-Crown-5 | Na⁺ complex | |
| Cryptand [2.2.2] | bicyclic crown | Stronger than crown; K⁺ |
| Cinchoninium / cinchonidinium chiral PTC | Cinchona + benzyl quaternary | Asymmetric alkylation (Maruoka, Corey, O’Donnell, Lygo) |
| Maruoka’s binol-derived chiral PTC | Quaternary ammonium with C₂-symmetric arms | Industrial-scale asymmetric alkylation |
1.8 Lewis acid catalysts
| Lewis acid | Notes |
|---|---|
| BF₃·OEt₂ (boron trifluoride etherate) | Strong, gas-handled; aldol, Mukaiyama, Friedel-Crafts |
| AlCl₃ | Friedel-Crafts (acyl better than alkyl); stoichiometric usually |
| ZnCl₂ | Mild; sugar chemistry |
| FeCl₃ | Mild, cheap, “green”; SNAr-like |
| TiCl₄ | Strong; Mukaiyama aldol |
| SnCl₄ | Friedel-Crafts |
| TMSOTf (trimethylsilyl trifluoromethanesulfonate) | Activates acetals; aldol initiation |
| Sc(OTf)₃ | Water-tolerant; Kobayashi, Mukaiyama |
| Yb(OTf)₃, Y(OTf)₃, La(OTf)₃ | Lanthanide triflates; water-tolerant |
| In(OTf)₃ | Heavy Lewis acid, mild |
| Bi(OTf)₃ | ”Green” Lewis acid; low tox |
| Cu(OTf)₂ | Mild; chiral with BOX |
| TfOH triflic | Brønsted acid super; non-coordinating |
| Tf₂NH bistriflimide | Even less nucleophilic |
| BPh₃, B(C₆F₅)₃ “FLP” frustrated Lewis pair partner | Hydrogenation, H₂ activation |
1.9 Catalyst suppliers (2024–2026)
| Supplier | Strengths | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Strem Chemicals (now part of Thermo Fisher) | Specialty inorganic / organometallic catalysts; rhodium acetate Rh₂(OAc)₄, Pd₂(dba)₃, Wilkinson’s | strem.com |
| Sigma-Aldrich (Merck KGaA Life Science) | Largest catalog; Pd cats, NHC, ligands, isotopes | sigmaaldrich.com |
| TCI (Tokyo Chemical Industry) | Organic catalysts, organocatalysts (proline, MacMillan cats commercial) | tcichemicals.com |
| Alfa Aesar (now Thermo Fisher) | Inorganic + organometallic | alfa.com |
| Combi-Blocks | Building blocks + some catalysts | combi-blocks.com |
| Oakwood Chemical | Fluorinated, specialty | oakwoodchemical.com |
| Apollo Scientific | UK; mid-scale | apolloscientific.co.uk |
| Acros Organics (Thermo Fisher) | Catalog reagents | acros.com (now under Fisher) |
| Carbosynth (now Biosynth) | Carbohydrates + some catalysts | biosynth.com |
| AmBeed | Chinese; cheap building blocks + Pd cats | ambeed.com |
| Apex Molecular | UK; rare ligands | apexmolecular.com |
| Umicore Precious Metals Chemistry | Industrial-scale Pd, Pt, Ru, Ir catalysts; Grubbs catalysts | umicore.com |
| Materia (Grubbs catalysts, now Umicore) | ||
| Johnson Matthey | Pt-group catalysts for industrial use | matthey.com |
| BASF | Industrial heterogeneous + homogeneous | basf.com |
| Heraeus | Pt-group, specialty | heraeus.com |
| Albemarle | Catalysts for refining + polymerization | albemarle.com |
| Evonik | Heterogeneous catalysts (silica-supported) | evonik.com |
| Clariant | Industrial heterogeneous (NH₃ synthesis, hydrogenation) | clariant.com |
Part 2 — Lab Instrumentation
2.1 NMR spectrometers
High-field research NMR
| Vendor | Model line | Frequency range | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bruker BioSpin | Avance NEO | 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900, 1000, 1100, 1200 MHz | Workhorse; cryoprobes (Prodigy, CryoProbe) liquid-He cooled give 4× sensitivity; ~15M; “Hyperion” 1.2 GHz (28.2 T magnet) installed 2020 ETH Zürich |
| JEOL Resonance | ECZ-R series | 400, 500, 600, 800 MHz | ECZ-L benchtop, ECZ-S high-field |
| Bruker BioSpin | Avance III HD (legacy) | 200–950 MHz | Pre-2020 generation |
| Oxford Instruments magnets | (supplies superconducting magnet to Bruker, JEOL); now spun off as Oxford Diffraction (X-ray) | ||
| Varian (Agilent) | DD2, VNMRS, Inova | Up to 1000 MHz | Discontinued 2014; legacy support |
Benchtop NMR (40–100 MHz; permanent-magnet)
| Vendor | Model | Frequency | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nanalysis | NMReady-60Pro | 60 MHz | ~$60K |
| Nanalysis | NMReady-100 | 100 MHz | ~$90K |
| Magritek | Spinsolve 43, 60, 80, 90 | 43–90 MHz | 200K |
| Bruker | Fourier 80 | 80 MHz | ~$70K |
| Thermo Fisher (picoSpin) | picoSpin 45/80 (now discontinued) | 45, 80 MHz | $25K |
| Anasazi Instruments | EFT-90 | 90 MHz (uses Varian/Agilent recommission magnets) | Lower cost |
| Oxford Instruments | Pulsar (60 MHz) | discontinued |
NMR tubes and sample prep
| Vendor | Use |
|---|---|
| Wilmad-LabGlass | Standard 5 mm, 3 mm NMR tubes (#528-PP, 535-PP for low-field) |
| Norell Inc. | High-quality tubes; thin-wall for sensitivity (ST500-7) |
| New Era Enterprises | Concentric/coaxial tubes for solvent suppression |
| Shigemi tubes | Limited-volume / susceptibility-matched |
| Rototec-Spintec | Tubes plus shimming stds |
2.2 Mass spectrometers
Orbitrap and FT-MS (highest mass accuracy)
| Vendor / Model | Resolution | Use | Approximate price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thermo Fisher Orbitrap Exploris 480 | 480,000 @ m/z 200 | Discovery proteomics, metabolomics | $1M |
| Thermo Fisher Orbitrap Exploris 240 | 240,000 | DDA proteomics | $700K |
| Thermo Fisher Orbitrap Exploris 120 | 120,000 | Quant + DIA | $500K |
| Thermo Fisher Orbitrap Eclipse Tribrid | 500,000 + ion trap + quad | Top-down proteomics, multiplexed | $1.2M |
| Thermo Fisher Orbitrap Ascend Tribrid (2022) | 500,000 + multiplexed TMT 18-plex | Phosphoproteomics | $1.4M |
| Thermo Fisher Orbitrap Astral (2023) | 200,000 (with 200 Hz Astral mass analyzer) | Ultra-fast DIA proteomics | $1.6M |
| Thermo Fisher Q Exactive HF-X | 240,000 | Older but capable | $700K refurb |
| Thermo Fisher Orbitrap GC | 60,000 | GC-coupled | |
| Bruker scimaX FT-ICR | >1,000,000 (7 T, 9.4 T, 15 T magnets) | Petroleomics, asphaltenes, ultra-high res | $2M+ |
QTOF and TOF
| Vendor / Model | Resolution | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Waters Xevo G3-XS QTof | 50,000 | LC-MS/MS small molecules, metabolomics |
| Waters Synapt XS (HDMS) | 60,000 + ion mobility | Glycans, isomer separation |
| Waters Vion IMS-QTof | 50,000 + IMS | Forensics, metabolites |
| Waters BioAccord LC-MS | 50,000 (compact) | Biotherapeutic intact mass |
| AB Sciex TripleTOF 6600+/7600 | 35,000–40,000 | Discovery proteomics SWATH-DIA |
| AB Sciex ZenoTOF 7600 (with Zeno trap) | 30,000 with high duty cycle | Quant + EAD electron-activated dissoc |
| Bruker timsTOF Pro 2 / timsTOF Ultra | 50,000 with TIMS (trapped ion mobility) | PASEF proteomics fast |
| Agilent 6546 LC/Q-TOF | 60,000 | Untargeted small molecule |
| Agilent 7250 GC/Q-TOF | 25,000 | GC-MS env / forensic |
| Shimadzu LCMS-9050 | 30,000 | LC-MS QTOF |
| JEOL JMS-T2000GC AccuTOF GCx-Plus | 30,000 | GC-MS field |
Triple quad (targeted quant gold standard)
| Vendor / Model | Use |
|---|---|
| AB Sciex QTRAP 7500 (with linear IT) | Quant + qualitative (MS3) |
| AB Sciex Triple Quad 7500+ | Pharma/clinical |
| Thermo TSQ Altis Plus | Drug bioanalysis |
| Waters Xevo TQ Absolute | High-sensitivity; pesticide residue |
| Agilent 6470 / 6495 LC/TQ | Routine LC-MS/MS quant |
| Shimadzu LCMS-8060 NX | High-throughput |
GC and GC-MS
| Vendor / Model | Notes |
|---|---|
| Agilent 7890B GC, 8890 GC | Standard GC |
| Agilent 5977B MSD (single quad GC-MS) | Routine |
| Agilent 7000D GC/MS QQQ (triple quad) | Trace |
| Shimadzu GC-2030 Nexis, GCMS-QP2020 NX | Mid-range |
| Thermo TRACE 1310 GC, ISQ 7610 GC-MS single quad | Mid-range |
| Thermo TSQ 9610 GC-MS/MS | Trace |
2.3 Chromatography
HPLC / UHPLC
| Vendor / Model | Pressure | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Waters Acquity UPLC (2004 — first commercial UHPLC) | 15,000 psi (1034 bar) | Inventor of category |
| Waters Acquity Premier (2020) | 22,000 psi | Hybrid surface tech for metals-sensitive |
| Waters BioAccord LC-MS | UPLC + low-res MS | Biotherapeutic ID/quant |
| Waters Alliance HPLC (legacy) | 6000 psi | Standard HPLC |
| Empower CDS (Waters) | Chromatography data system | Industry standard |
| Agilent 1290 Infinity II UHPLC | 18,000 psi | High res |
| Agilent 1260 Infinity II HPLC | 9000 psi | Mid-range |
| Shimadzu Nexera X3 | 19,000 psi | UHPLC |
| Shimadzu LC-2030C 3D Plus i-Series | Compact, autosampler integrated | |
| Thermo Vanquish (Horizon, Flex, Neo, Duo) | 22,000 psi | UHPLC; Duo dual-LC pump |
| Thermo UltiMate 3000 (legacy nanoLC) | 800–1000 bar nanoflow | Proteomics |
| Knauer AZURA P 6.1L / Pump 6.1L | Modular | German prep-LC |
| GE Healthcare / Cytiva ÄKTA | FPLC for proteins |
Flash chromatography
| Vendor / Model | Cartridges |
|---|---|
| Biotage Sfär Selekt (former SP1/Isolera) | Sfär Silica HC + KP-Sil + C18 |
| Biotage Isolera Spektra | UV/Vis |
| Teledyne ISCO CombiFlash NextGen 300+ | RediSep cartridges |
| Buchi PureFlash 7 / Pure C-810 | Buchi cartridges |
| Reveleris X2 (Buchi acquired Grace) | — |
| Yamazen W-Prep 2XY | Japanese; mid-range |
Silica gel suppliers
| Vendor | Grade | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Merck KGaA (Sigma) | Silica gel 60 (40–63 μm, 70–230 mesh, 230–400 mesh) | Column |
| SiliCycle | SiliaSep cartridges; silica gel 60 | Flash |
| Acros / Thermo | Silica 60 | General |
| Sorbent Technologies | Premium fine | |
| Fuji | C18 reverse-phase silica |
Supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC)
| Vendor / Model |
|---|
| Waters ACUITY UPC² (Ultra-Performance Convergence Chromatography) |
| Agilent SFC |
| Shimadzu Nexera UC SFC |
| Sepiatec Sepi Prep + Sepi Pure |
| Thar SFC (now Waters) |
2.4 IR and UV-Vis
FTIR
| Vendor / Model | Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Thermo Fisher Nicolet iS5 / iS10 / iS20 / iS50 | 400–7800 cm⁻¹ (mid-IR) | Standard FT-IR; ATR add-on |
| Thermo Fisher Nicolet iN10 / iN10 MX | IR microscope | Particle ID |
| Bruker Alpha II | Compact, ATR | Routine ID |
| Bruker Vertex 70/80 | Research-grade | |
| Bruker Hyperion 3000 | IR microscope | |
| PerkinElmer Spectrum Two / Spectrum 3 | Standard | |
| Agilent Cary 630 FTIR | Portable | Field, dial-a-molecule |
| Shimadzu IRTracer-100 / IRSpirit | Mid-range | |
| JASCO FT-IR 6800 | High-res | |
| Mettler-Toledo ReactIR 15 / 702L | Reaction monitoring (in-situ IR) |
UV-Vis spectrophotometers
| Vendor / Model | Type |
|---|---|
| Agilent Cary 60 (single-beam Xenon flash) | Compact |
| Agilent Cary 3500 (multi-cell, ultra-fast scan) | Research |
| Agilent Cary 5000 / 7000 (UV-Vis-NIR) | Materials research |
| Thermo Genesys 30 / 50 / 150 / 180 (UV-Vis) | Routine to research |
| Thermo Evolution Pro / 350 / 220 | Variable temp |
| PerkinElmer Lambda 365 / 465 / 850 / 1050+ | Variable spec |
| Shimadzu UV-1900i / UV-2600i / UV-3600i Plus | Range |
| Shimadzu BioSpec-nano | μL DNA/protein |
| Thermo NanoDrop One / One C / 8000 | μL biology DNA/protein |
| PG Instruments T80+, T90+ | UK; mid-range |
Spectrofluorometers
| Vendor / Model |
|---|
| Horiba FluoroMax-4 / FluoroLog-3 / Aqualog (carbon DOM EEM) |
| Edinburgh Instruments FS5 / FLS1000 |
| Agilent Cary Eclipse |
| Thermo Lumina |
| PTI QuantaMaster (Horiba) |
| Tecan Infinity M / Spark / Spark Multimode plate reader |
| BMG Labtech CLARIOstar Plus / FLUOstar Omega |
2.5 X-ray crystallography
| Vendor / Model | Use |
|---|---|
| Rigaku XtaLAB Synergy-S / Synergy-DW / Synergy-i | Single-crystal X-ray; Cu/Mo dual source; HyPix6000HE detector; ~700K |
| Rigaku Smartlab SE / SmartLab XE / MiniFlex 600 | Powder XRD (PXRD) |
| Bruker D8 Venture / D8 Quest | Single-crystal; Photon III detector; ~$400K |
| Bruker D8 Advance / D8 Discover | Powder XRD |
| Stoe StadiVari | Custom-config single-crystal |
| Malvern Panalytical Aeris / Empyrean | Powder XRD compact + research |
| Anton Paar | Compact PXRD |
2.6 Glove boxes, Schlenk lines, high-pressure reactors
Glove boxes (inert atmosphere)
| Vendor / Model |
|---|
| MBraun UniLab Pro (small) / UniLab Plus (large) / UniGlove (single-station) — < 1 ppm O₂ + H₂O |
| Inert Pure Lab / Pure Genesis (US-based; reseller competitor) |
| Vacuum Atmospheres NEXUS-One / NEXUS-Two |
| Glove Box Technology (GBT) custom |
| Jacomex BS-521 |
Schlenk lines
| Vendor |
|---|
| Chemglass Life Sciences (CG-4520, modular dual-line) |
| Aldrich (Sigma) standard |
| Synthware (US) |
| Synlabs |
| Custom glass blowers — Pyrex 5-port manifolds |
High-pressure reactors (autoclaves)
| Vendor / Model | Range |
|---|---|
| Parr Instrument Company 4500/4530/4540/4560 stirred series | 25–2000 mL; up to 350 bar, 350 °C |
| Parr 5500 / 5520 multi-reactor | Parallel |
| BÜCHI Glas Uster picoclave / midiclave / kiloclave | Stirred, 10–10,000 mL |
| Berghof BR-300 BR-1000 | Acid digestion + autoclave |
| Asynt SyrPress | Reactor blocks |
| Anton Paar Synthos 3000 | Microwave + autoclave |
| Top Industrie / HEL series | High-throughput parallel |
| Mettler-Toledo OptiMax + EasyMax (in-situ stirred) — non-pressure usually | |
| ChemPRO 4 / Picoclave |
2.7 Automated synthesizers and liquid handlers
| Vendor / Model | Use |
|---|---|
| Chemspeed SWING XL / FLEX | High-throughput parallel synthesis |
| Mettler-Toledo EasyMax 102 / EasyMax 402 | 2-reactor automated stirred reactor; Ramp + sample |
| Mettler-Toledo OptiMax 1001 | 1 L automated |
| Radleys Carousel 6 Plus / 12 Plus | Parallel; multi-reactor |
| Radleys Mya 4 | 4-reactor benchtop |
| Hamilton MICROLAB STAR / VANTAGE | Liquid handling, biotech |
| Tecan Fluent 480 / 780 / 1080 | Biotech |
| Eppendorf epMotion 5070 / 5073 / 5075 | Mid-scale liquid handling |
| Agilent Bravo NGS Workstation | NGS-focused |
| Beckman Coulter Biomek i5/i7/i9 | Liquid handling |
| Synthace (software-controlled automation) | |
| Opentrons OT-2 / Opentrons Flex | Open-source, ~$10K |
2.8 Microscopy
(See model-organisms-and-sequencing-tech for cryo-EM specifically.)
SEM / FIB-SEM
| Vendor / Model |
|---|
| Thermo Fisher Apreo 2 SEM / Apreo S |
| Thermo Fisher Helios 5 FX / G4 FIB-SEM |
| Thermo Fisher Verios G4 |
| JEOL JSM-IT500 InTouchScope SEM |
| JEOL JSM-7900F FE-SEM |
| Hitachi SU7000 / SU8230 |
| Zeiss Sigma 300 / Sigma 500 |
| Zeiss GeminiSEM 460 / 560 |
| Zeiss Crossbeam 350 / 550 / 750 (FIB-SEM) |
TEM / STEM
| Vendor / Model |
|---|
| Thermo Fisher Titan Themis Z (aberration-corrected) |
| Thermo Fisher Talos F200X / G2 |
| Thermo Fisher Glacios cryo-TEM |
| Thermo Fisher Krios G4 cryo-TEM (300 kV) |
| JEOL ARM200F / ARM300F (aberration-corrected) |
| JEOL JEM-F200 (cold-FEG TEM) |
| Hitachi HF5000 STEM-Cs |
2.9 Electrochemistry, calorimetry, balances, centrifuges, rheology
| Vendor / Model | Use |
|---|---|
| Gamry Interface 1010E / Reference 600+ / Reference 3000 / Interface 5000 | Potentiostat / galvanostat |
| Bio-Logic Science Instruments VMP-300 / SP-300 / SP-150e | Potentiostat |
| Pine Research WaveDriver 40 / 200 | Potentiostat |
| CH Instruments CHI660E / 760E / 920D | Affordable potentiostat |
| Princeton Applied Research VersaSTAT | Legacy |
| Metrohm Autolab PGSTAT204 / PGSTAT302N | Potentiostat |
| TA Instruments Discovery DSC 25 / 2500 / X3 | DSC + modulated DSC |
| TA Instruments Q2000 (legacy) | |
| Mettler-Toledo DSC 3+ / DSC 5+ | DSC |
| Setaram BT-EVO Calvet | DSC research |
| IKA C5000 / C6000 bomb calorimeter | Combustion heat |
| TA Instruments Discovery HR-30 / HR-3 / HR-20 / ARES-G2 | Rheometer |
| Anton Paar MCR 702 e-Twin Drive / MCR 502 / MCR 302e | Rheometer |
| Brookfield AMETEK DV3T / DV2T / KU-3 | Viscometer |
| Mettler-Toledo XPR-S / XSE / ME-T balances | Analytical balance to 0.01 mg |
| Sartorius Cubis II MCA / Practum / Entris II | Balance |
| Mettler-Toledo SevenCompact / SevenExcellence pH meter | |
| Hanna Instruments HI5222 / HI6321 pH meter | |
| Metrohm Eco / OMNIS Titrando autotitrator | |
| Eppendorf Centrifuge 5430 R / 5810 R / 5424 R | Benchtop |
| Thermo Sorvall LYNX 6000 / RC 6 / ST 40R | Floor-standing |
| Beckman Coulter Avanti J-15R / JXN-26 / Optima XPN ultracentrifuge | Ultra |
Part 3 — Monomer Catalog
3.1 Chain-growth (vinyl / addition) monomers
| Monomer | Structure | Polymer | Producer notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ethylene | CH₂=CH₂ | PE (HDPE, LDPE, LLDPE, UHMWPE) | ExxonMobil Chem, Dow, LyondellBasell, Sinopec, SABIC, Formosa Plastics; global ~210 Mt/y |
| Propylene | CH₃CH=CH₂ | PP (iso, syndio, atactic); EPDM | LyondellBasell (largest), ExxonMobil, Borealis, Sinopec, SABIC |
| 1-Butene | CH₃CH₂CH=CH₂ | LLDPE comonomer | |
| 1-Hexene | C₄H₉CH=CH₂ | LLDPE / HDPE comonomer | |
| 1-Octene | C₆H₁₃CH=CH₂ | LLDPE comonomer | Sasol, Shell, Chevron Phillips |
| Isobutylene | (CH₃)₂C=CH₂ | Butyl rubber (with isoprene), PIB | ExxonMobil; Lanxess |
| 1,3-Butadiene | CH₂=CHCH=CH₂ | PB (polybutadiene); SBR (styrene-butadiene rubber); NBR (nitrile rubber); ABS | LyondellBasell, ExxonMobil, INEOS, Sinopec; global ~12 Mt/y |
| Isoprene | CH₂=C(CH₃)CH=CH₂ | Polyisoprene (synthetic natural rubber); butyl rubber | Goodyear (Natsyn), Kuraray, Zeon, JSR; bio-isoprene under development (Genencor-Goodyear, Ajinomoto) |
| Chloroprene | CH₂=CClCH=CH₂ | Neoprene (polychloroprene) | DuPont (now Denka) |
| Styrene | C₆H₅CH=CH₂ | PS, HIPS, EPS, SBR, ABS, SAN, SBS | LyondellBasell, Trinseo, INEOS Styrolution; global ~32 Mt/y |
| α-Methylstyrene | C₆H₅C(CH₃)=CH₂ | Copolymer modifier | |
| Vinyl chloride (VCM) | CH₂=CHCl | PVC | Westlake Corp (Axiall), Shintech (Formosa Plastics), Occidental (OxyChem), INOVYN; global ~52 Mt/y |
| Vinylidene chloride | CH₂=CCl₂ | PVDC (Saran), copolymers | DowDuPont (former Saran wrap, now disc.) |
| Vinyl acetate (VAM) | CH₂=CHOC(=O)CH₃ | PVAc, EVA, PVOH (PVA after hydrolysis) | Celanese, Dairen, Wacker, Kuraray; global ~7 Mt/y |
| Acrylonitrile (AN) | CH₂=CHCN | PAN (carbon-fiber precursor), SAN, ABS, NBR | INEOS, Ascend Performance Materials, Asahi Kasei, Sinopec, Mitsubishi Chem; global ~6 Mt/y |
| Methyl methacrylate (MMA) | CH₂=C(CH₃)CO₂CH₃ | PMMA (Plexiglas, Lucite, Perspex) | Röhm (Evonik spin-off), Mitsubishi Chem, Lucite/Mitsubishi, Sumitomo; ~4 Mt/y |
| Methyl acrylate (MA) | CH₂=CHCO₂CH₃ | Coatings, textile fiber | BASF, Arkema, Dow |
| Ethyl acrylate (EA) | CH₂=CHCO₂C₂H₅ | Acrylic emulsions | BASF, Dow |
| Butyl acrylate (BA) | CH₂=CHCO₂C₄H₉ | Acrylic emulsions (paints, adhesives) | BASF, Dow, Arkema |
| 2-Ethylhexyl acrylate (2-EHA) | CH₂=CHCO₂CH₂CH(C₂H₅)C₄H₉ | Pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSAs) | BASF, Dow |
| Isobornyl methacrylate (IBOMA) | bicyclic methacrylate | High-Tg coatings, dental | San Esters, Sartomer (Arkema) |
| Hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) | CH₂=C(CH₃)CO₂CH₂CH₂OH | Hydrogels (contact lens — Wichterle 1959) | Bimax, Estron Chemical |
| Hydroxyethyl acrylate (HEA) | CH₂=CHCO₂CH₂CH₂OH | Coatings hydroxyl-functional | |
| Glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) | CH₂=C(CH₃)CO₂CH₂(epoxide) | Epoxy-acrylate copolymers, reactive coatings | Dow, Mitsubishi Chem |
| Acrylic acid (AA) | CH₂=CHCOOH | Polyacrylates, super-absorbent polymer (SAP, diapers) | BASF, Dow, Nippon Shokubai, Arkema |
| Methacrylic acid | CH₂=C(CH₃)COOH | Copolymers, ion-exchange resins | |
| Acrylamide (AAm) | CH₂=CHCONH₂ | Polyacrylamide (PAM) — flocculants, hydrogels; SDS-PAGE gels | SNF Floerger, Kemira, BASF, Mitsubishi Chem |
| N-Isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM) | thermo-responsive | PNIPAM smart polymers (LCST 32 °C) | Sigma 415324 |
| N,N-Dimethylacrylamide (DMA) | Photoresists | ||
| Vinylpyrrolidone (NVP) | N-CH=CH₂ in 5-ring lactam | PVP (povidone — drug excipient, food additive, hair spray) | BASF, Ashland (Solplus) |
| Vinyl pyridine 2-/4-VP | Polyelectrolytes | ||
| Ethyleneimine (aziridine) | 3-membered NH ring | PEI (polyethyleneimine) — gene delivery, water treatment | BASF Lupasol, Nippon Shokubai |
3.2 Fluoromonomers
| Monomer | Polymer | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tetrafluoroethylene (TFE) | PTFE (Teflon, Plunkett 1938 DuPont) | Chemours, Daikin, Solvay, AGC; ~$8/lb |
| Hexafluoropropylene (HFP) | FEP (TFE/HFP), with TFE; PVDF copolymers | |
| Vinylidene fluoride (VDF, VF₂) | PVDF (Kynar — Arkema; Solef — Solvay; Dyneon) — piezoelectric β-phase; Li-ion battery binder | |
| Perfluoropropyl vinyl ether (PPVE) | PFA (TFE/PPVE copolymer) | More processable than PTFE |
| Perfluoromethyl vinyl ether (PMVE) | MFA copolymer | |
| Chlorotrifluoroethylene (CTFE) | PCTFE (Kel-F, Neoflon), ECTFE (with ethylene; Halar — Solvay) | Lower permeability than PTFE |
| Vinyl fluoride (VF) | PVF (Tedlar — DuPont) | Films |
| 2,2,2-Trifluoroethyl methacrylate | Specialty optical | |
| Hexafluoropropylene oxide (HFPO) | Krytox (DuPont) lubricants; GenX replacement for PFOA — itself now PFAS concern (drinking water in Cape Fear NC) | |
| Fluorinated surfactants (PFOA, PFOS, GenX) | Phased out by 2025 — EPA designating PFAS hazardous substances April 2024 |
3.3 Step-growth (condensation) monomers
| Diacid / lactone | Diamine / diol | Polymer | Producer notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terephthalic acid (TPA) / dimethyl terephthalate (DMT) | Ethylene glycol (MEG) | PET (polyethylene terephthalate) — bottles, fibers | Indorama Ventures (largest), Alpek, Far Eastern New Century, Reliance; global ~90 Mt/y |
| Terephthalic acid | 1,4-Butanediol (BDO) | PBT (polybutylene terephthalate) | BASF, Lanxess |
| Terephthalic acid | 1,3-Propanediol (PDO, bio from DuPont Tate & Lyle Sorona) | PTT (Sorona) | DuPont/Sorona joint venture |
| Adipic acid (AA) | Hexamethylenediamine (HMDA) | PA 6,6 (nylon 6,6 — Carothers 1935 DuPont) | Ascend (Solutia legacy), Invista, Radici, BASF, Lanxess |
| ε-Caprolactam | (ring-open) | PA 6 (nylon 6 — Schlack 1938 IG Farben → BASF) | BASF, Honeywell (Aegis), DOMO, AdvanSix, UBE |
| Sebacic acid (C10) | Decanediamine | PA 6,10 | Castor-oil derived (Hokoku Pure Chem, Vertellus) |
| Adipic acid | 1,9-nonanediamine | PA 6,9 | |
| Dodecanedioic acid (DDDA) | HMDA | PA 6,12 | DuPont, Cathay Biotech (bio C12) |
| Dimer fatty acid (C36) | HMDA / IPDA | Various PA, hot-melt adhesives | Croda, Oleon, Cargill |
| 11-Aminoundecanoic acid (castor-bean derived) | self | PA 11 (Rilsan B — Arkema) | Arkema |
| Laurolactam (12-membered) | self | PA 12 (Vestamid — Evonik; Rilsan A — Arkema; Grilamid — EMS) | Evonik, Arkema, UBE, EMS-Chemie |
| BPA (bisphenol A) | Phosgene (COCl₂) or DMC | PC (polycarbonate — Bayer 1953) | Covestro (Makrolon), SABIC (Lexan), Mitsubishi Chem, Wanhua |
| BPA + DGEBA + amine hardener | Epoxy thermoset (most common — DER 331 Dow, Epon 828) | Olin (Dow + Olin JV), Hexion, Huntsman, Aditya Birla | |
| Methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI 4,4′) | Polyol | Polyurethane (PUR; PIR) rigid foam, CASE | Wanhua (largest), Covestro, BASF, Dow, Huntsman; global ~10 Mt/y MDI |
| Toluene diisocyanate (TDI 80/20 mix) | Polyol | PU flexible foam | Covestro, BASF, Sinopec, Wanhua |
| Hexamethylene diisocyanate (HDI) | Coatings, weatherable PU | Covestro, Vencorex | |
| Isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI) | Coatings | Evonik, Vencorex | |
| ε-Caprolactone | self | PCL (polycaprolactone) — biodegradable, low Tm 60 °C | Perstorp Capa, Daicel |
| Glycolide + L-Lactide | PLGA — bioresorbable sutures (Vicryl by Ethicon/J&J), drug-delivery (Genzyme, Evonik Resomer) | Corbion (Purasorb), Evonik (Resomer) | |
| L-Lactide (or rac-) | self | PLA (polylactic acid — bioplastic) | NatureWorks Ingeo, Total Corbion (now Total Energies/Corbion), Sulzer |
| Glycolide | self | PGA polyglycolide | sutures (Dexon legacy) |
| 1,3-Dioxolan-2-one (ethylene carbonate) | Polycarbonate co-monomer |
3.4 Specialty / specialty-step monomers
| Monomer | Polymer | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4) | PDMS (silicone) — by anionic / cationic ROP | Dow Corning (Dow), Wacker, Shin-Etsu, Momentive, Elkem |
| Hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane (D3) | PDMS | More strained, faster ROP |
| Dimethyldichlorosilane (Me₂SiCl₂) | hydrolysis → silanols → siloxanes | |
| Trimethylsilanol, TMS-OMe, etc. | Endcappers | |
| Vinyltrimethoxysilane (VTMS) | Silane coupling agents | Evonik Dynasylan, Wacker Genosil |
| Aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) | Glass surface modification, biosensor | |
| Hexafluorobisphenol A (BPAF) | High-performance PC, polyimide | |
| 4,4′-Oxydianiline (ODA) + pyromellitic dianhydride (PMDA) | Kapton polyimide (DuPont 1965) | DuPont, Ube, SKC Kolon, Kaneka |
| 3,3′,4,4′-Biphenyltetracarboxylic dianhydride (BPDA) + p-phenylenediamine (PDA) | Upilex polyimide (Ube) | |
| Poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK) — from 4,4′-difluorobenzophenone + hydroquinone | PEEK (Victrex 1981) | Victrex (largest), Solvay (KetaSpire), Evonik (Vestakeep), JK PEEK |
| Poly(phenylene sulfide) (PPS) — from p-dichlorobenzene + Na₂S | PPS Fortron (Celanese), Ryton (Solvay) | |
| Cyclic olefin (norbornene + ethylene) | COC (Topas — Polyplastics; APEL — Mitsui Chem) | Optical, medical |
| Dicyclopentadiene (DCPD) | pDCPD (Telene, Pentam) ROMP-PR-injection-molded | Materia, RIMTEC |
3.5 Bio-based monomers (rising)
| Monomer | Polymer | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Lactic acid → lactide | PLA | Commercial; NatureWorks 150 kt/y Blair NE; Total Energies Corbion 75 kt/y Rayong Thailand |
| Bio-MEG (mono-ethylene glycol, from sugarcane) | Bio-PET | India Glycols, Braskem; Coca-Cola PlantBottle 30% bio-MEG |
| Bio-PDO (1,3-propanediol, from corn glucose by E. coli fermentation) | Sorona PTT — DuPont Tate & Lyle joint venture (2003 launch) | DuPont, COFCO Bioscience |
| Bio-succinic acid | PBS (polybutylene succinate), bio-PU | Mitsubishi Chem BioPBS; Reverdia (legacy DSM-Roquette JV closed 2019); Bioamber (bankrupt 2018) |
| FDCA (furandicarboxylic acid, from fructose via HMF) | PEF (polyethylene furanoate) — Avantium YXY tech; 5 kt/y plant Delfzijl NL 2024 | Avantium |
| Itaconic acid | Polyitaconate | Lucite/Mitsubishi; Itaconix; ZuChem |
| Levulinic acid | GVL (γ-valerolactone solvent) | GFBiochemicals |
| HMF (5-hydroxymethylfurfural) | Building block to FDCA, DFF, MMF | AVA Biochem |
| Furfural | Tetrahydrofuran (via furan), 2-MeTHF, GVL | Central Romana, IFC, Linzi, Hongye, Pennakem |
| Bio-isoprene | Polyisoprene tires, butyl | Genencor-Goodyear (development), Yulex, Ajinomoto |
| Bio-styrene (from cinnamic acid / sugar) | Bio-PS | Pilot stage |
| Bio-ethylene (from sugarcane → bioethanol → ethylene) | Bio-PE — Braskem I’m Green 200 kt/y Triunfo Brazil | Braskem (largest), Dow (Sao Paulo small) |
| Bio-MEG (mono-ethylene glycol via bio-EO) | Bio-PET, Bio-PEF | India Glycols |
| Bio-PBS (polybutylene succinate, succinic acid + 1,4-BDO bio routes) | PBSA, PBS biodegradable | Mitsubishi Chem BioPBS Thailand 20 kt/y |
| Castor-oil based 11-aminoundecanoic | PA 11 Rilsan (Arkema) | Arkema |
| Cathay Biotech Terryl (bio C12 DDDA) | PA 6,12 | Shandong, China |
3.6 Major monomer producers (2025 landscape)
| Producer | HQ | Monomers |
|---|---|---|
| ExxonMobil Chemical | USA | Ethylene, propylene, butyl, polyethylene, polypropylene |
| Dow Inc. (former Dow Chemical) | Midland MI | Ethylene, propylene, acrylates, polyols, epoxy DER |
| LyondellBasell | Houston/Rotterdam | PP, propylene oxide; largest licensor of PP tech |
| SABIC (Saudi Basic Industries Corp) | Riyadh | Ethylene, polyethylene, PC (Lexan), PMMA |
| Sinopec | Beijing | Vast monomer + polymer; world’s largest by some measures |
| Formosa Plastics Group (Taiwan) | Inc Shintech (PVC) | Ethylene, VCM, PVC, PE, PP, PTA |
| INEOS | London/Houston | Ethylene, propylene, PS (Styrolution JV), ABS, PE |
| Borealis | Vienna | PP, PE (Borstar tech) |
| Indorama Ventures | Bangkok | PTA, MEG, PET |
| Reliance Industries | Mumbai | PTA, PET, PE, PP, vinyls |
| Hyosung | Seoul | Spandex monomers (TPU), PA 6 (Topnyl), Polyketone |
| DuPont (now Chemours, Corteva, DuPont separate) | Wilmington DE | Fluoromonomers (Chemours: Teflon, Krytox), Kevlar (PPTA), Nomex; Nylon (now Invista) |
| Chemours | Wilmington DE | Teflon (PTFE), Viton, Nafion, Tedlar |
| Solvay | Brussels | Vulcan PVDF, Solef PVDF, Halar ECTFE, Hyflon PFA, KetaSpire PEEK; spun off Syensqo 2023 |
| Syensqo (Solvay spin-off 2023) | Belgium | Specialty polymers |
| Mitsubishi Chemical Group | Tokyo | MMA, AN, BPA, ε-caprolactam, BioPBS, polyolefins |
| Sumitomo Chemical | Tokyo | MMA, polyolefins |
| BASF | Ludwigshafen | Acrylates (largest), AA, isocyanates (MDI, TDI), ε-caprolactam, PA 6/6,6, PBT, ETPU (Infinergy), PIB |
| Covestro (former Bayer MaterialScience) | Leverkusen | MDI (largest globally), TDI, HDI, polyols, PC (Makrolon), TPU |
| Huntsman | Houston | MDI, polyols, epoxy, surfactants |
| Wanhua Chemical | Yantai China | MDI (largest globally as of 2023), TPU, PC; ~$25B revenue |
| Asahi Kasei | Tokyo | MMA, AN, S-SBR (synthetic rubber), Saran |
| Arkema | Colombes France | Acrylics (Sartomer), PA 11 (Rilsan), PVDF (Kynar), Pebax |
| Kuraray | Tokyo | PVA, EVOH, isoprene, vinyl acetate, polyester |
| Lanxess | Cologne | EPDM, NBR, polybutadiene (BR), polyamides, urethane intermediates |
| Trinseo (former Styron) | Berwyn PA | Styrenics, ABS, PS, latex |
| INEOS Styrolution (JV INEOS-BASF) | Frankfurt | PS, ABS, SAN, SBC |
| Celanese | Dallas | VAM, acetate flake, POM (Hostaform/Celcon), PPS (Fortron) |
| Olin | Clayton MO | Epoxy resins + intermediates (Dow Epoxy assets acquired) |
| Hexion | Columbus OH | Epoxy resins, formaldehyde-based, phenolic |
| Wacker Chemie | Munich | Silicones, dispersions, polysilicon |
| Shin-Etsu Chemical | Tokyo | Silicones, PVC (largest US producer through Shintech), photoresist |
| Momentive Performance Materials | Waterford NY | Silicones |
| Elkem | Oslo | Silicones, silicon, ferrosilicon |
| Cabot Corp | Boston MA | Carbon black (tire reinforcement), fumed silica |
| Honeywell Advanced Materials | Charlotte | Caprolactam, fluorinated specialties (Solstice), Aegis nylon |
| Ascend Performance Materials | Houston | Acrylonitrile, HMDA, PA 6,6 (Vydyne) |
| AdvanSix | Parsippany NJ | Caprolactam, PA 6 (Aegis Nylon 6 fiber) |
| Invista | Wichita | PTA, HMDA, PA 6,6 (Cordura, T-shirt), spandex (Lycra — sold 2019), PBT |
| Eastman Chemical | Kingsport TN | PET, copolyester (Tritan), cellulose acetate, plasticizers |
| Toray Industries | Tokyo | PAN carbon fiber, PET, nylon, polyolefin film |
| Hexcel | Stamford CT | Carbon fiber + resin (aerospace) |
Adjacent
- reagent-and-reaction-catalog — Reagents the catalysts above act with; named reactions.
- spectroscopy-reference-tables — Detailed spec on NMR / MS / IR instruments listed above.
- functional-groups-and-solvents — Functional groups produced by these catalysts.
- organic-chemistry — Mechanistic context for catalyst classes.
- polymer-chemistry — Polymerization mechanisms (radical, anionic, cationic, coord, step, ROMP) using the monomers cataloged.
- inorganic-chemistry — Coordination chemistry of metal catalysts (Rh, Ru, Ir, Pd, Ni, Cu).
- analytical-chemistry — Choosing the right instrument for a measurement.
- model-organisms-and-sequencing-tech — Cryo-EM, NGS instruments parallel structural-biology lineup.
- materials-properties — Polymer mechanical/thermal data for the polymers built here.
- industrial-equipment-and-suppliers — Industrial-scale reactor + autoclave vendors.