The chemical industry comprises the companies that produce industrial chemicals. Central to the modern world economy, it converts raw materials (oil, natural gas, air, water, metals, and minerals) into more than 70,000 different products.The plastics industry contains some overlap, as most chemical companies produce plastic as well as other chemicals.
Products
Everything you can breathe, see, ingest or touch is made up of chemicals. All matter, including us, is made of chemicals. Chemistry is the study of the composition, structure, properties and reactions of matter.
Chemicals
Matter (anything made of atoms) can also be called a chemical. So if atoms are LEGO blocks, chemicals are the structures you can build with them. They can be in any form – liquid, solid or gas. Chemicals can be a pure substance or a mixture. For example, water (H2O) is a chemical.
Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula NH3. The simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent smell. It is a common nitrogenous waste, particularly among aquatic organisms, and it contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers.