Wacker Celebrates 100th Birthday of Silicone Pioneer Prof. Richard Müller
A ceremony at WACKER's Nünchritz site in Saxony, Germany, recalled the pioneering achievements of chemist Professor Richard Müller. July 17 marks the 100th birthday of Prof. Müller, who passed away in 1999. Contemporaneously with American researcher Eugene G. Rochow, Müller discovered a synthesis method for the large-scale manufacture of methylchlorosilanes in 1942 and thereby established the foundations of modern silicone chemistry.
Named after the two co-discoverers, the Müller-Rochow process continues to be the sole method in use worldwide for manufacturing silicone precursors on an industrial scale. The Nünchritz site has been applying the results of Müller's silicone manufacturing research since 1954. The site's new facility, currently under construction, will manufacture methylchlorosilanes using the Müller-Rochow process, too.
WACKER is investing more than EUR 400 million in the expansion of production facilities for silicones and their precursors, as well as in providing infrastructure, environmental protection and safety equipment. This investment will increase capacity, particularly for siloxanes, to many times its current level. Thus, Nünchritz, after Burghausen, is WACKER's second pillar for ensuring global growth. The expansion will create more than 200 new jobs.
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