Ethylene

choi

(3) Jack Kaskey with Lynn Doan, Ethylene.         Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Sept 11, 2017.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/a ... commodity-by-harvey

Quote:

"Many Americans have probably never heard of ethylene. But this colorless, flammable gas usually made by superheating oil or natural gas is arguably the most important petrochemical on the planet -- and much of it comes from the Gulf Coast region savaged by Hurricane Harvey. Ethylene and its derivatives account for about 40 percent of global chemical sales, says Hassan Ahmed, an analyst at Alembic Global Advisors. The US accounts for 1 of every 5 tons on the market * * *

"Texas produces almost three-quarters of the nation's ethylene supply. That's critical this basic chemical building block is the foundation for making plastics essential to US consumer and industrial goods, from car parts used by Detroit to diapers sold by Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Processing plants turn the chemical into polyethylene, the world's most common plastic, which is used in garbage bags, food packaging, and even chewing gum. As ethylene glycol, it's the antifreeze that keeps engines and airplane wings from freezing in winter. It also becomes the polyester used in textiles and water bottles.

Note:
(a) The print and online versions are not the same. The quotations are from print.

(b)
(i) ethylene  乙烯
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethylene
("its worldwide production * * * exceeds that of any other organic compound")
(ii) "Ethylene occurs naturally -- it's the gas given off by fruit as it ripens."
(A) The reporter makes a faux pas: ethylene is a plant hormone that ripens fruits. A ripening fruit does not give off ethylene, which is in minute amount and  
(B) Postharvest Information Network, Tree Fruit Research & Extension Center, Washington State University, undated
http://postharvest.tfrec.wsu.edu/pages/PC2000F
("You can't see or smell it. Some fruit will produce ethylene as ripening begins. Apples and pears are examples of fruit that produce ethylene with ripening. Ethylene is responsible for the changes in texture, softening, color, and other processes involved in ripening. Fruits such as cherries and blueberries do not produce much ethylene and it doesn't influence their ripening")
(iii) Ethylene. PubChem (open chemistry database), National Center for Biotechnology Information, US National Institute of Health, undated
https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Ethene
("is a colorless gas with a sweet odor and taste")

So I guess that when Washington State says you can't smell it (ethylene), it means it is a hormone, too little to be detected by a nose.

(c) "is the foundation for making plastics"

resin identification code
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resin_identification_code
(2 = high-density polyethylene; 4 = low-density polyethylene)

(d) "polyethylene * * * is used in * * * even chewing gum"
(i) The Secret Science of Gum. American Chemical Society (ACS), undated
https://www.acs.org/content/acs/ ... ence-stuff/gum.html
("Gum base often contains polyethylene")
(ii) Raychelle Burks, What's that stuff? Chewing Gum. c&en (chemistry and engineering news; published by ACS), Aug 6, 2007
http://cen.acs.org/articles/85/i32/Chewing-Gum.html
("According to gum research and company websites, we're often chewing on synthetic polymers—styrene-butadiene rubber, polyethylene, polyvinyl acetate—with a bit of natural latex thrown in.  The various ingredients in gum are not listed on the back of the package. Unless certain health or other claims are made, gum is exempt from labeling requirements enforced by the Food & Drug Administration. Even if every tiny pack of gum bore a label, the many ingredients that make gum chewy can legally be lumped together as 'gum base' ")

(e) ethylene glycol
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethylene_glycol
(f)
(i) polyester
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyester
(ii) Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) "is produced from ethylene glycol and dimethyl terephthalate(DMT).:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyethylene_terephthalate