The history of silicone softeners

The history of silicone softeners

In 1863, French chemists C.Friedel and J.M.Crafts produced the first organosilicon compound SiEt4 containing Si-C bonds.

In the late 1930s, silicone was made.

In 1940, simethicone was produced.

In 1943, Dow Chemical (Dow) and Corning Glass Company (Corning) jointly established Dow Corning (Dow Corning, DC), specializing in the production and research of silicone. In 2016, Dow Chemical acquired the shares held by Corning, and Dow Corning, which has 73 years of ownership, withdrew from the stage of history.

In 1947, General Electric (GE) established the Silicone Division. In 2006, Apollo acquired the Silicone Business Unit of General Electric for US$3.8 billion and formally established Momentive Advanced Materials Group (MPM). In 2010, Apollo merged Momentive Advanced Materials and Hexion to form Momentive Advanced Materials Holding Co., Ltd. In May 2019, a consortium composed of South Korea's KCC, Wonik QnC and SJL Partners L.L.C. formally completed the acquisition of Momentive Group!

In 1947, Dr. Siegfried Nitzsche's report entitled "Silicon-Containing Plastics" conquered WACKER, and German WACKER immediately decided to hire this young chemist. Dr. Siegfried Nitzsche later became the father of WACKER silicones. In 1949, Dr. Nitzsche and his colleagues successfully developed the first silane composition. Soon after, the first silane furnace was built and put into use. In 1955, WACKER produced the first silicon rods. In 2005, German Wacker and its Chinese partner Demei Fine Chemicals Co., Ltd. formed a joint venture to produce silicones.

In 1952, Bayer (BAYER) began to produce silicone, and later a joint venture with GE.

In 1953, Shin-Etsu Japan began to produce silicone, and in 2002, Zhejiang Shin-Etsu Fine Chemical Co., Ltd. was established.

In 1954, France's Rhône-Planck established a new factory in St. Von and created a siloxane and silicon derivatives factory. (Later merged into China's Bluestar Silicones.)

In 1966, Toray of Japan began to produce silicone, which was later merged into Dow Corning.

In 1968, Xinghuo Chemical Plant was formally established. In 1979, the Ministry of Petrochemical and Jiangxi Provincial Planning Commission approved Xinghuo Plant to build an organic silicon production facility with an annual output of 600 tons. In 1996, Xinghuo Silicone joined China National Bluestar Corporation.

In 1984, the founder of Bluestar led 7 people and borrowed 10,000 yuan to establish China's first professional cleaning company. Since 2006, Bluestar has successively acquired French Adisseo, French Rhodia’s silicone and sulfide business and Australia’s Qenos, entered the international market and transformed into globalization. In 2011, Bluestar acquired Elkem of Norway; in 2018, Elkem integrated the Bluestar silicon industry chain and listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange in Norway, becoming the first Chinese company to be listed in Norway.

China has become the largest consumer and producer of organic silicon materials.