The fire on August 22 night in Huantai in the eastern province of Shandong was put out after about five hours and authorities said no contamination has been detected, Xinhua said.
But the disaster is bound to raise more questions about safety standards in a country where industrial accidents are all too common following three decades of fast economic growth. A blast at an auto parts factory killed 75 people a year ago.
Windows shattered in the village where the blast occurred, state media said, and tremors could be felt 2 km (1 mile) away. Some 150 fire fighters and 20 fire engines were sent to the scene.
The explosion destroyed a factory belonging to Runxing Chemical, a subsidiary of the Runxing Group with 200 million yuan ($31 million) in registered capital, Xinhua reported.
The factory produced adiponitrile, a colorless liquid that releases poisonous gases when it reacts with fire, according to Xinhua.
On Aug. 12, two explosions at a warehouse storing dangerous chemicals devastated an industrial park in the northeastern port city of Tianjin, killing at least 121 people, including 67 fire fighters. More than 700 people were injured and thousands were evacuated because of the risk posed by chemicals stored at the site.
