Precipitated Silica (Dental Grade)

Maker of Zeodent dental-grade precipitated silicas (abrasive + thickening) and other specialty minerals; the dental-silica standard.

Evonik Industries AG (XETRA: EVK; Essen Germany; MDAX listed); world's largest DL-methionine producer under the MetAMINO brand. Total DL-methionine capacity exceeds 700,000 MT/year across three continental hubs: Jurong Island Singapore (~340,000 MT/year — world's largest single methionine complex, expanded +40k MT August 2024), Theodore Mobile County Alabama USA (~245,000 MT/year), and Antwerp Belgium (~120,000 MT/year). The Wesseling Germany DL-Met line closed Q1 2021 as Evonik consolidated production to the three-hub network. Evonik first commercialized DL-methionine synthesis in the 1950s under predecessor Degussa. MetAMINO is Evonik's largest single product. ~30-32% global market share. In February 2022 Evonik announced a $176.5M investment in a new methyl mercaptan (MMP intermediate feedstock) plant at the Alabama site.

Global coatings manufacturer; second major food can interior coating supplier via PPG Innovel (applied to 220+ billion cans in 40+ countries) and Nutrishield product lines. Co-dominant with Sherwin-Williams in North American can coatings.

Belgian specialty chemical company (Euronext: SOLB, HQ Brussels; ~€4.9B revenue after 2023 split); major global HF (hydrogen fluoride) producer and the world's largest producer of fluorine-based specialty chemicals. Solvay's HF is produced at multiple European sites (Dombasle-sur-Meurthe, France; Rosignano, Italy) via reaction of fluorspar (CaF2) with sulfuric acid. HF is the gateway chemical for Solvay's entire fluorine chemistry chain: HF → fluoropolymers (PTFE, PVDF), refrigerants (HFCs/HFOs), specialty fluorinated gases (NF3 precursor), and electronic-grade HF for semiconductors. Solvay split into two companies in December 2023 — the new 'Solvay' retained the specialty chemicals (including HF and fluorine) while 'Syensqo' retained the advanced materials — so the HF supply chain is now within the post-split Solvay entity. Solvay was founded in 1863 by Ernest Solvay, inventor of the Solvay process for soda ash (sodium carbonate) production — the same Belgian industrial dynasty that revolutionized 19th-century chemical manufacturing now controls a critical node in 21st-century semiconductor supply chains.

U.S. specialty chemicals company; #1 US FCC catalyst supplier (~38% US market share) via Grace Catalysts Technologies. Baton Rouge, LA facility is the site of the world's FIRST commercial FCC unit (commissioned May 25, 1942). ~$300M Louisiana investment across Baton Rouge, Norco, and Sulphur facilities. Developed REpLaCeR family of low/zero rare earth FCC catalysts in response to 2010 China lanthanum supply crisis. The same company filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April 2001 due to asbestos liabilities from its historical vermiculite mining operations; asbestos claims now managed through a trust fund, while the catalyst business continues growing.