On September 20, 1938, the German chemist, Dr. Otto Roelen, then the research director at Ruhrchemie in Oberhausen (now Oxea), filed a patent application for the oxo synthesis. His great discovery, also known as hydroformylation, laid the foundation for the large-scale organometallic chemical industry and first enabled the manufacturing of many items that we use every day. Today, more than 12 million tons of oxo chemicals are produced annually worldwide. These are used to make products like cleaning agents and detergents, flavorings and fragrances, cables and hoses, hand lotions, paints and varnishes, food wrapping products and safety film lamination, high-quality coatings as well as lubricants for environmentally-friendly cooling appliances and turbines.

"Since Roelen discovered the oxo synthesis 75 years ago, this technology has been continually improved. It forms the backbone of Oxea. The company is now the second-largest manufacturer of oxo products worldwide and the supplier with the largest commercial market share", said Dr. Martina Floeel, spokeswoman for the executive board at Oxea. "Based on our longstanding, in-depth know-how, we have been able to expand our product portfolio toward high-margin oxo derivatives with great success in recent years", Floeel continued.

In commemoration of this pioneering discovery 75 years ago at the Oxea Ruhrchemie plant, some 200 business partners and friends of Oxea were invited to a two-day celebration event.