Industrial gases are gaseous materials manufactured for use in industry, chiefly nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, argon, hydrogen, helium, and acetylene, produced mainly through air separation units, which yield nitrogen, oxygen, and argon, and steam reforming, which yields hydrogen and synthesis gas. The sector supplies an unusually wide range of industries, including oil and gas, petrochemicals, chemicals, power generation, mining, steelmaking, metals, environmental protection, medicine, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, food, water treatment, fertilizers, nuclear power, electronics, and aerospace. Major companies include Air Liquide, Air Products and Chemicals, the Linde Group, which has acquired both BOC and Praxair, the Messer Group, BASF, and Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation. The industry operates at every scale, from building entire process facilities and pipelines for large industrial clients down to individual cylinder gas supply and retail channels such as balloon helium and welding gas.
Industrial gases are gaseous materials manufactured for use in industry, chiefly nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, argon, hydrogen, helium, and acetylene, produced mainly through air separation units, which yield nitrogen, oxygen, and argon, and steam reforming, which yields hydrogen and synthesis gas. The sector supplies an unusually wide range of industries, including oil and gas, petrochemicals, chemicals, power generation, mining, steelmaking, metals, environmental protection, medicine, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, food, water treatment, fertilizers, nuclear power, electronics, and aerospace. Major companies include Air Liquide, Air Products and Chemicals, the Linde Group, which has acquired both BOC and Praxair, the Messer Group, BASF, and Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation. The industry operates at every scale, from building entire process facilities and pipelines for large industrial clients down to individual cylinder gas supply and retail channels such as balloon helium and welding gas.