Salt as a Byproduct, Byproducts of Salt

The salt industry has not only advanced infrastructure, but it has also spawned countless adjunct industries. On occasion, salt was accidentally discovered while in pursuit of another resource, such as oil or petroleum. Brine is a source material for the chemical industry. Rock salt or brine serves as a basic component for an array of materials, including plastics, glass, synthetic rubber, cleansers, pesticides, paints adhesives, metal coatings, and chloralkaline chemicals. While the Kanawha salt industry declined in importance after 1861, the advent of World War I brought a demand for chlorine, caustic acid and other chemical products, which could be obtained from salt brine. Chemical industries continue to flourish in the Kanawha Valley in the early 2000s. Great chemical industries, like Dow Chemical, among others, are based in and around Detroit chiefly because of the availability of salt.