Union Carbide Corporation is an American manufacturer of chemicals, petrochemicals, and related products. It focuses on the manufacture of building-block chemicals such as ethylene and propylene, which are converted into widely used plastics resins, primarily polyethylene. It is also a producer of ethylene oxide and ethylene glycol used to make polyester fibers and antifreeze, respectively. Union Carbide makes solvents and intermediates (oxo aldehydes and esters), vinyl acetate monomer, water-soluble polymers, and polyolefin-based compounds. Union Carbide Corporation was formed in 1917 from the combination of four companies: Union Carbide Co. (incorporated 1898), Linde Air Products Co. (incorporated 1907), National Carbon Co., Inc. (incorporated 1899), and Prest-O-Lite Co., Inc. (incorporated 1913).