Acquisitions, Dispositions, Ventures and Plant Closures	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2013
Acquisitions, Dispositions, Ventures and Plant Closures [Abstract]
Acquisitions, Dispositions, Ventures and Plant Closures	Acquisitions, Dispositions, Ventures and Plant Closures Acquisitions In January 2012, the Company completed the acquisition of certain assets from Ashland Inc., including two product lines, Vinac^® and Flexbond^®, to support the strategic growth of the Company's emulsion polymers business. The acquired operations are included in the Industrial Specialties segment. Pro forma financial information since the acquisition date has not been provided as the acquisition did not have a material impact on the Company’s financial information. The Company allocated the purchase price of the acquisitions to identifiable intangible assets acquired based on their estimated fair values. The excess of purchase price over the aggregate fair values was recorded as goodwill. Intangible assets were valued using the relief from royalty and discounted cash flow methodologies which are considered Level 3 measurements under FASB ASC Topic 820, Fair Value Measurement ("FASB ASC Topic 820"). The relief from royalty method estimates the Company’s theoretical royalty savings from ownership of the intangible asset. Key assumptions used in this model include discount rates, royalty rates, growth rates, sales projections and terminal value rates, all of which require significant management judgment and, therefore, are susceptible to change. The key assumptions used in the discounted cash flow valuation model include discount rates, growth rates, cash flow projections and terminal value rates. Discount rates, growth rates and cash flow projections are the most sensitive and susceptible to change as they require significant management judgment. The Company, with the assistance of third-party valuation consultants, calculated the fair value of the intangible assets acquired to allocate the purchase price at the acquisition date. Ventures On May 15, 2013, the Company and Mitsui & Co., Ltd., of Tokyo, Japan, announced they had signed an agreement to establish a joint venture for the production of methanol at the Company's integrated chemical plant in Clear Lake, Texas. The planned methanol unit will utilize natural gas in the US Gulf Coast region as a feedstock and will benefit from the existing infrastructure at the Company's Clear Lake facility. The planned methanol facility will have an annual capacity of 1.3 million tons and is expected to begin operations in mid-2015.

Acquisitions, Dispositions, Ventures and Plant Closures

Acquisitions

In January 2012, the Company completed the acquisition of certain assets from Ashland Inc., including two product lines, Vinac^® and Flexbond^®, to support the strategic growth of the Company's emulsion polymers business. The acquired operations are included in the Industrial Specialties segment. Pro forma financial information since the acquisition date has not been provided as the acquisition did not have a material impact on the Company’s financial information.

The Company allocated the purchase price of the acquisitions to identifiable intangible assets acquired based on their estimated fair values. The excess of purchase price over the aggregate fair values was recorded as goodwill. Intangible assets were valued using the relief from royalty and discounted cash flow methodologies which are considered Level 3 measurements under FASB ASC Topic 820, Fair Value Measurement ("FASB ASC Topic 820"). The relief from royalty method estimates the Company’s theoretical royalty savings from ownership of the intangible asset. Key assumptions used in this model include discount rates, royalty rates, growth rates, sales projections and terminal value rates, all of which require significant management judgment and, therefore, are susceptible to change. The key assumptions used in the discounted cash flow valuation model include discount rates, growth rates, cash flow projections and terminal value rates. Discount rates, growth rates and cash flow projections are the most sensitive and susceptible to change as they require significant management judgment. The Company, with the assistance of third-party valuation consultants, calculated the fair value of the intangible assets acquired to allocate the purchase price at the acquisition date.

Ventures

On May 15, 2013, the Company and Mitsui & Co., Ltd., of Tokyo, Japan, announced they had signed an agreement to establish a joint venture for the production of methanol at the Company's integrated chemical plant in Clear Lake, Texas. The planned methanol unit will utilize natural gas in the US Gulf Coast region as a feedstock and will benefit from the existing infrastructure at the Company's Clear Lake facility. The planned methanol facility will have an annual capacity of 1.3 million tons and is expected to begin operations in mid-2015.