Praxair, Inc. was an American worldwide industrial gases company. Founded in 1907, Praxair was the largest industrial gases company in North and South America, and the third-largest worldwide by revenue. In 2018 it merged with Linde AG to form Linde plc. The Praxair name was discontinued on September 1, 2020 in the US.[3]
History
The company was founded in Germany by Carl von Linde as Linde Air Products Company in 1907. During the First World War, however, it was confiscated and in 1917, it joined with 4 other chemical companies under the name Union Carbide and Carbon Corporation, while maintaining a separate identity.[4] Its degree of independence waxed and waned over the years, and in 1992, it was spun off as a subsidiary, Union Carbide Industrial Gases Inc., and renamed to Praxair when it became a formally independent company three years later.[5] The name is derived from a combination of the Greek word "praxis", or practical application, and "air", the company's primary raw material.