Extended Operational and Trade Vocabulary

Chemical Tanker Operators and IBC Code Cargoes glossary

Vocabulary of parcel chemical shipping: IBC Code pollution categories and ship types, stainless-steel and coated containment requirements for cargoes such as acetic acid, acetone and acrylonitrile, nitrogen blanketing and polymerization control, and the pool operators and owners like Stolt-Nielsen, Odfjell and ACE Quantum trading the parcel-tanker routes.

139 defined terms.

A

ACE Quantum Chemical Tankers: Singapore-based commercial pool operator managing IMO Type 2 stainless-steel parcel tankers in the 19,000 to 25,000 dwt range, primarily trading intra-Asia and Middle East Gulf to India routes.
Acetic Acid: Carboxylic acid CH3COOH transported under the IBC Code as a Type 3 ship cargo, MARPOL Annex II Category Z, requiring stainless steel 316L tank construction due to severe corrosion of carbon steel.
Acetone: IBC Code noxious liquid (Chapter 17), flammable solvent carried in chemical tankers.
Acrylonitrile: Nitrile CH2CHCN carried as a Type 2 ship cargo, Category Y under Annex II, inhibited monomer with strict inhalation toxicity controls under Chapter 15.
Aframax Coated Parcel Carrier: 80,000 to 120,000 dwt epoxy-coated tanker used by Stolt-Nielsen and Odfjell for clean petroleum products and easy chemicals when stainless capacity is short.
Aichi Kaiun: Japanese owner of small stainless coastal chemical tankers in the 1,000 to 3,000 dwt range trading Japanese petrochemical complexes for Mitsubishi Chemical and Mitsui Chemicals.
Alcohols Category: IBC Code grouping covering methanol, ethanol, isopropanol and n-butanol, generally shipped under Category Y or Z with zinc silicate or stainless segregation from acids.
Aliphatic Solvents: Hexane, heptane and white spirit carried as Category Y or Z cargoes requiring epoxy or zinc silicate coatings and vapor return at load and discharge berths.
Alkenes: Reactive olefins such as butene-1, hexene-1 and octene-1 shipped under Category Y with strict temperature control and nitrogen blanketing on Stolt and Odfjell vessels.
Anti-Static Additive: Additive in jet fuel to dissipate charge during loading.
Aromatics: Benzene, toluene, xylene; carried in chemical and product tankers.
Asahi Tanker: Tokyo-based operator of chemical and coastal tankers, partner with Mitsui OSK in domestic Japanese parcel trades and electric-tug ventures.
Atlantic Triangulation: Standard Stolt and Odfjell trade pattern loading petrochemicals US Gulf to Europe, easy chemicals Europe to South America and vegetable oils South America to US Gulf.

B

Bahri Chemicals: Saudi national operator of 36 IMO Type 2 stainless-steel chemical tankers, headquartered in Riyadh and partnered with Odfjell in the former NCC-Odfjell joint venture before going independent in 2016.
BCH Code: Bulk Chemical Code, the predecessor instrument to the IBC Code applying to chemical tankers constructed before 1 July 1986.
Benzene: IBC Category Y, toxic aromatic; vapor monitoring required.
Biofuel Carriage: Growing parcel-tanker trade in FAME, used cooking oil and HVO feedstocks, often loaded alongside vegetable oils for European RED II buyers.
Blanket Gas: Inert gas (typically nitrogen) maintained at slight positive pressure over reactive cargoes such as styrene, butadiene and vinyl acetate monomer.
Bulk Liquid Chemical Trade: Global seaborne market of around 380 million tons per year split roughly between organic chemicals, vegetable oils and inorganic acids.
Butadiene: IBC chemical; carried in chemical and gas tankers; polymerization risk.

C

Cargo Compatibility Chart: USCG 46 CFR 150 matrix listing safe co-loading combinations for chemical cargoes, used alongside the IBC Code by every chemical-tanker chief officer.
Cargo Heating Coils: Stainless steel U-tube heating bundles supplied by Allweiler or DESMI providing 60 to 100 deg C steam heating for solidifying cargoes such as palm oil and phenol.
Cargo Pool: Commercial arrangement where multiple owners contribute vessels to a joint marketing entity, exemplified by Hafnia Pools and Womar Tanker Pools.
Cargo Record Book: Required under MARPOL Annex II for NLS tankers.
Cargo segregation: IGC Code requirement that incompatible gas cargoes be carried in separate piping and tank systems to prevent dangerous mixing.
Cargo Tank Coating: Lining applied to chemical or product tanker tanks, typically pure epoxy, phenolic epoxy, or inorganic zinc silicate depending on cargo compatibility.
Category X Substance: MARPOL Annex II noxious liquid presenting major hazard, requiring stringent prewash to discharge ashore and zero residue overboard.
Category Y Substance: NLS presenting hazard to marine resources or human health, requiring prewash above 1 mt residue at less than 25 percent stripping efficiency.
Category Z Substance: NLS presenting minor hazard, allowing residue discharge below the waterline outside 12 nautical miles at not more than 7 knots.
Caustic Soda: Sodium hydroxide solution, typically 50% strength, dosed into closed-loop scrubber washwater.
Chembulk Tankers: New York-based operator of around 25 IMO Type 2 stainless-steel parcel tankers, acquired by Greek owner Berlian Laju in 2007 and later sold to Hua An Marine in 2017.
Chemical Distribution Institute (CDI): Industry vetting body running CDI-M ship inspections used by Dow, BASF, Shell, ExxonMobil and other chemical majors before nomination.
Chemical Parcel Trade: Liner-style service moving 1,000 to 5,000 mt parcels of specialty chemicals on fixed Atlantic, transpacific and Middle East to Asia rotations.
Class IMO Type 1: Most stringent IBC Code ship type, with cargo tanks not more than 1,250 m3 each and located more than 0.76 m from the side shell.
Class IMO Type 2: Moderate IBC Code ship type with maximum tank size 3,000 m3 and side shell distance of 0.76 m, the workhorse standard for stainless parcel tankers.
Class IMO Type 3: Least restrictive IBC Code ship type for hazardous bulk chemicals with no individual tank-size cap and minimal side-protection requirements.
Closed Loading: Cargo intake with the ullage hatch shut and vapor return connected, mandatory for benzene, MTBE and other toxic or carcinogenic Category Y cargoes.
Coating Resistance List: Published manufacturer compatibility guide such as PhenGuard 935 or Marineline 784 listing cargoes, temperatures and exposure times the lining can withstand.
Cofferdam: Temporary watertight enclosure for construction.
Commodity Chemicals: Large-volume cargoes such as MEG, methanol, paraxylene and styrene shipped on swing carriers and MR-sized parcel tankers.
Crystal Pool: Finnish-Estonian product and chemical tanker pool managed by Crystal Nordic from Copenhagen until restructuring into Crystal Nordic Chemical and later absorption by Hafnia.

D

Deepwell Pump: Submerged pump for chemical and product tankers.
Dow Chemical: Major US chemical shipper, a foundation customer of Stolt-Nielsen and Odfjell COA programs since the 1960s.

E

Easy Chemicals: Trade-name for cleaner Category Z products such as MEG, methanol, ethanol and IPA carried on epoxy-coated MR parcel tankers and swing carriers.
Eitzen Chemical: Norwegian chemical tanker operator with a fleet primarily engaged in deep-sea parcel trades.
Epichlorohydrin: Category Y reactive chemical (C3H5ClO) requiring stainless steel containment and nitrogen blanket, a regular Stolt and Odfjell COA cargo from US Gulf and Korea.
Epoxy Coating: Fusion-bonded epoxy applied to pipeline field joints and external surfaces for corrosion protection.
Ethanol: Class 3 flammable; carried in product or chemical tankers; needs dry tanks.
Ethylene Dichloride (EDC): Category Y chlorinated solvent (C2H4Cl2) carried on stainless steel as PVC feedstock from US Gulf, Saudi Arabia and Iran to Asian VCM producers.

F

Fatty Acids: Tallow, palm and coconut-derived oleochemicals requiring 60 to 70 deg C heating and stainless or PhenGuard-coated tanks.
Formaldehyde: Category Y reactive aldehyde (CH2O) shipped as 37 to 50 percent aqueous solution with methanol stabilizer, mostly in epoxy-coated tanks.
Framo Pump: Hydraulically driven submerged deepwell pump from Frank Mohn AS Bergen, the dominant cargo pump on parcel tankers built since the late 1980s.

G

Gas Freeing: Replacement of hydrocarbon vapor with inert gas then air to allow tank entry.
Glycerin: USP food-grade and crude grades shipped in stainless and PhenGuard-coated tanks for personal care and pharmaceutical buyers.

H

Hafnia Pool: Singapore and Copenhagen-based product and chemical tanker pool, owned by Hafnia Limited and part-owned by BW Group, operating around 200 vessels across LR1, MR and Handy stainless segments.
Hua An Marine: Chinese parent that acquired Chembulk Tankers in 2017, integrating the fleet into Asian parcel trades.
Hyundai Mipo Dockyard: HHI group yard specializing in medium range tankers.

I

IBC Code: International Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Dangerous Chemicals in Bulk.
IBC Code Chapter 17: Summary tabulation of all listed cargoes with ship type, tank type, vent and special carriage requirements, the primary reference for chemical-tanker chief officers.
IBC Code Chapter 18: List of non-IBC products (vegetable oils and certain non-toxic chemicals) carried under simpler Annex II Category Y or Z controls.
Iino Lines: Tokyo-based Iino Kaiun Kaisha, operator of around 35 chemical and gas tankers including IMO Type 2 stainless parcel carriers serving Asian and global trades.
IMO Type Notation: SOLAS-required class notation such as IMO II indicating the cargo-segregation and side-shell-protection level designed into the hull.
IMPCA: International Methanol Producers and Consumers Association, publisher of the global reference methanol specification followed by Methanex, SABIC, Sipchem and others.
Inerting: Replacing tank atmosphere with inert gas (N2, IG) below 8% O2 for tankers, 5% for chemicals.
Inhibitor Certificate: Document issued by the cargo shipper attesting the type, concentration, and expiry date of the polymerization inhibitor in a monomer cargo.
INTERTANKO Chemical Committee: Industry body coordinating chemical-tanker owner positions on regulation, vetting and operational standards.
IPA: Isopropyl alcohol (C3H8O), Category Z solvent in major demand for pharmaceuticals and cleaning, often co-loaded with acetone on parcel tankers.

J

Japanese Owners Group: Includes Iino, NYK, MOL, K-Line and Asahi Tanker, traditionally dominant in intra-Asia chemical parcel trades.

K

K-Tankers: Earlier brand name for K-Line chemical and product tanker fleet before its integration into Hafnia and partner pools.

L

Liquid Inhibitor: Chemical additive injected at load port to prevent polymerization in monomers such as styrene, vinyl acetate and acrylates.
LR Type II: Lloyd's Register IMO Type 2 chemical tanker class notation.

M

Maersk Tankers: Danish operator that exited chemical-tanker ownership but remains active via the Hafnia pool partnership and through commercial management of stainless steel parcel tonnage.
Marineline 784: Advanced Polymer Coatings cargo tank lining engineered for resistance to aggressive chemical cargoes.
MARPOL Annex II: Prevention of pollution by noxious liquid substances.
MEG: Monoethylene glycol; hydrate inhibitor injected into subsea flowlines.
Methanex: Vancouver-based methanol producer and a founding member of the Methanol Institute, owner of methanol-fueled tonnage through Waterfront Shipping.
Methanol: IBC Category Y; flammable; common chemical tanker cargo.
MOL Chemical Tankers: Japanese chemical tanker operator under the Mitsui O.S.K. Lines group operating a global fleet.
MTBE: Methyl tertiary-butyl ether (C5H12O), Category Y gasoline blendstock carried in epoxy or stainless tanks from Middle East and US Gulf to Latin America and Asia.

N

Nitric Acid: UN 2031, Class 8 with Class 5.1 subsidiary risk depending on concentration.
Nitrogen generator: Onboard plant producing pressurized nitrogen for inerting and barrier space purging.
Nordic Tankers: Copenhagen-based chemical operator acquired by MOL Chemical Tankers in 2018; previously absorbed Crystal Pool chemical activities and built its fleet to around 50 IMO Type 2 vessels before the MOL…

O

Odfjell SE: Bergen-Norway based listed company founded by Fred Olsen and Odfjell families in 1916, operator of around 90 IMO Type 2 chemical tankers and 18 chemical terminals through Odfjell Terminals worldwide.
Odfjell Terminals: Joint venture network of chemical storage terminals with Lindsay Goldberg and Vopak partners covering Rotterdam, Houston, Charleston, Jiangyin and Onsan.
Oleochemicals: Palm, coconut and tallow-derived fatty acids, fatty alcohols, methyl esters and glycerin shipped from Southeast Asia to North America and Europe on stainless tankers.
OS Category: Other Substances, IBC Code designation for non-MARPOL-listed cargoes with no Annex II pollution category, carried under residual operational controls.

P

Palm Oil: Edible vegoil; carried at 32-40 C.
Palm Olein: Liquid palm fraction shipped in 1,000 to 10,000 mt parcels with 35 to 45 deg C heating throughout the voyage.
Palm Stearin: Solid palm fraction requiring 55 to 65 deg C heating; common on Stolt, Odfjell, MOL and Bahri Asia-Europe rotations.
Paraxylene (PX): Category Y aromatic (C8H10) precursor to PTA and PET, moved in 5,000 to 35,000 mt parcels from Middle East Gulf and Korea to China.
Parcel tanker: Chemical tanker with many segregated tanks.
Penfield Marine: Greenwich Connecticut commercial pool operator running MR and Handy stainless tankers in Atlantic and Pacific basins, founded 2014.
PhenGuard: Hempel two-pack phenolic-epoxy cargo tank coating widely used on parcel and product tankers for vegetable oils, MEG and certain solvents.
Phosphoric Acid: Inorganic acid H3PO4 assigned UN 1805, carried under the IBC Code as a Category Z cargo with stainless steel containment.
Pre-Wash: Mandatory tank cleaning operation under MARPOL Annex II following discharge of certain Category X and Y cargoes.

Q

Quality Certificate: Laboratory certificate accompanying bunker delivery summarizing test results against ISO 8217 or contract specification.

R

Reactivity Hazard: IBC Code Chapter 15 grouping covering self-reactive cargoes such as butadiene, styrene, vinyl acetate and acrylates.
Reception Facility: Onshore facility for ship-generated wastes under MARPOL.
Right Ship Vetting: Australian-originated commercial vetting platform increasingly applied to chemical-tanker dry-cargo terminal calls.
Risk assessment: Documented evaluation of hazards.
Rotterdam Botlek: Largest European chemical cluster with Odfjell, Stolthaven, Vopak Botlek, ETT and ITC terminals serving regular parcel-tanker rotations.

S

SABIC: Saudi Basic Industries Corporation, methanol producer and member of the Methanol Institute.
Saudi Aramco: Reference oil and gas major; included for disambiguation.
Segregation Group: IBC Code Chapter 17 cargo grouping that defines incompatible cargo categories for stowage planning.
Side Shell Protection: IBC Code distance requirement of 0.76 m (Type 2) or 1.0 m (Type 1) between cargo tank boundary and ship side.
Slop Tank: Tank for oily residues under MARPOL Annex I.
Specialty Chemicals: Higher-margin small-parcel cargoes such as DMC, NMP, EDC and aniline carried in dedicated stainless tanks on Stolt and Odfjell.
Stainless Steel Cargo Tank: 316L, duplex 22Cr or super duplex 25Cr construction giving universal compatibility with acids, solvents and food-grade products without coating.
Stolt Tankers: Chemical tanker operating arm of Stolt-Nielsen managing a global fleet of stainless-steel parcel tankers.
Stolt-Nielsen SA: London and Oslo-listed group founded by Jacob Stolt-Nielsen in 1959, operator of the world's largest chemical-tanker fleet with around 165 deep-sea and regional ships through Stolt Tankers.
Stolthaven Terminals: Stolt-Nielsen tank-storage subsidiary with terminals at Houston, New Orleans, Santos, Antwerp, Singapore, Ningbo and Dagang.
Styrene Monomer (SM): Category Y reactive aromatic monomer (C8H8) requiring TBC inhibitor, oxygen content above 5 percent and temperature control below 25 deg C in stainless tanks.
Sulphuric Acid: Category Y inorganic acid (H2SO4), the largest acid cargo by volume, moved in carbon-steel-passivated or rubber-lined tanks to copper smelters and fertilizer plants.
Super Duplex 25Cr: UNS S32750 stainless alloy used on aggressive chloride-bearing cargoes and selected cargo piping.
Swing Carrier: 32,000 to 46,000 dwt stainless-steel or part-coated chemical tanker designed to switch between clean petroleum, MEG and easy chemicals on a voyage-by-voyage basis.

T

Tank Cleaning Guide: Verwey and Dr Verwey reference manual specifying wash sequences between every pair of chemical cargoes, the standard chief-officer tool on parcel tankers.
Tank Coating Survey: Inspection of tank linings during class and intermediate surveys.
Tank container: ISO tank container for liquids and gases.
Tank Heating: Steam at 6 to 9 bar supplied via dedicated cargo boiler or main boiler to maintain palm oil, phenol or DEG at carriage temperature.
Team Tankers International: Successor company holding most former Eitzen Chemical tonnage after 2011 financial restructuring, headquartered in Copenhagen.
Toluene: UN 1294, Class 3 flammable liquid Packing Group II.
Toluene Diisocyanate (TDI): Category Y polyurethane intermediate requiring dry nitrogen blanket and heated stainless tanks.
Triangulation Voyage: Three-leg chemical-tanker voyage combining outbound, repositioning and return cargoes to maximize stainless utilization, typified by Stolt and Odfjell Atlantic services.

U

Ulsan: South Korean city hosting HHI and Hyundai Mipo Dockyard.

V

Vegetable Oil: IMPA 550402 1 L bottle or 5 L jerrycan, dry stores staple.
Vent System: IBC Code Chapter 8 cargo-tank vent and pressure-vacuum valve arrangement with mast riser, flame screens and high-velocity valves.
Vetting Inspection: Tanker SIRE or CDI inspection on behalf of charterers.
Vinyl Acetate Monomer (VAM): Category Y reactive monomer (C4H6O2) requiring stainless tanks, hydroquinone inhibitor and tight temperature control.
Vopak: Royal Vopak operates tank terminals at Rotterdam Botlek, Vlaardingen, Europoort, Fujairah Horizon, and Singapore Sebarok serving the bunker market.

W

Waterfront Shipping: Methanex subsidiary that operates the first commercial fleet of methanol dual-fuel product tankers from 2016.
Womar Tanker Pools: Singapore and Stamford Connecticut commercial pool operator running stainless-steel chemical tankers in 19,000 to 33,000 dwt segment, founded by Womar Logistics.

X

X-Listed Cargo: MARPOL Annex II Category X substance such as phenol or aniline solutions, the most stringently regulated cargo category requiring shore-discharged prewash.
Xylene Isomers: Orthoxylene, metaxylene and paraxylene Category Y aromatics shipped in stainless or epoxy tanks from US Gulf, Korea and Middle East to Asia.

Y

Y-Listed Cargo: MARPOL Annex II Category Y substance covering most chemical-tanker cargoes including MEG, methanol, vegetable oils and aromatic solvents.
Yokohama: Sumitomo Electric submarine cable plant site since 1936, producing modern fiber cable for NEC system orders.

Z

Z-Listed Cargo: MARPOL Annex II Category Z substance representing the lowest-hazard NLS such as ethylene glycol, methanol and propylene glycol.
Zeebrugge: Belgian port with major ro-ro, container, and LNG terminals.
Zinc Silicate Coating: Inorganic zinc-rich cargo tank lining used for compatibility with vegetable oils and selected mineral cargoes.
Zodiac Maritime: London-based Ofer family shipping group with chemical and product tonnage active in global parcel trades.