PET bottle
A clear bottle moulded from PET — the signature work of the Ethylene × p-Xylene household.
Ancestors Ethylene · p-Xylene
From crude oil through the naphtha cracker, five midstream sisters are born — and the resins and rubbers they raise. One canvas, the whole lineage.
Naphtha (C5–C12) is distilled from crude oil and fed into a steam cracker at 800–870°C. In just 0.2–0.4 seconds of pyrolysis, the matriarchs of the family rise from the flame.
Crude oil and naphtha are treated as transit points in this MVP. Full personification is planned for a future release.
Five monomers born from the cracker. Each has its own double bond or aromatic ring, and each becomes the mother of countless plastics, rubbers, and fibres.
Bright matriarch of a big family. The world's largest monomer at 200 Mt/year and source of all four commodity plastics.
“PE, PVC, PET — all my children”
The methodical second sister. Mother of PP, contributing genes to EPDM and IIR.
“Order is what lets me be useful”
The springy younger brother. The bounce in SBR, BR, and NBR all comes from him.
“Bouncing — that's my job”
Classical aromatic prince. Ancestor of PS via styrene and of NBR via acrylonitrile.
“Kekulé's dreamed serpent — that's me”
Artisan of symmetry. Co-parent of PET via PTA — the source of bottles and polyester fibre.
“I just live straight”
Six commodity resins, five synthetic rubbers, and one independent natural rubber. Almost every material around you is a descendant of one of these branches.
PET bottles, shopping bags, tyres, containers… Pick something near you and walk the tree backwards to its molecular ancestors.
A clear bottle moulded from PET — the signature work of the Ethylene × p-Xylene household.
Ancestors Ethylene · p-Xylene
Soft, stretchy LDPE and crisp, tough HDPE — twin children of Ethylene.
SBR and BR carry friction and bounce, NR absorbs shocks. A trio collaboration of the rubber siblings.
Microwave-safe PP, thin and strong HDPE — your kitchen shelf is a duet of two houses.
PET spun into fibre — sportswear to fleece, this is where p-Xylene's family shines.
Ancestors Ethylene · p-Xylene
Hard, transparent PS is an artistic crystal of Benzene × Ethylene; foamed, it insulates buildings.
Ancestors Ethylene · Benzene
Ethylene's youngest paired with chlorine — the unsung hero of construction and plumbing.
Ancestors Ethylene
NBR from butadiene × acrylonitrile — oil-resistant star of medical and industrial fields.
Ancestors Butadiene · Benzene
Data on this page draws on government statistics, industry associations, IEA reports, and scientific databases.