Textiles and Apparel – Supporting Clothing Freedom
P-xylene (PX) is one of the most widely used aromatic hydrocarbons. In China, over 98% of PX is oxidized to terephthalic acid (PTA), used to produce polyester (PET). Currently, over 60% of textile raw materials and approximately 80% of beverage packaging bottles originate from polyester produced from PX. This not only replaces cotton, resolving the land competition between grain and cotton, but also supports the large-scale supply of the apparel industry. The core raw materials for our everyday polyester clothing and home textile products are all derived from aromatic hydrocarbons.
Packaging and Industrial Materials
Besides textiles, polyester (PET) is widely used in the production of beverage bottles, food packaging, mineral water bottles, and other everyday packaging materials.
Benzene, toluene, and xylene are the basic raw materials for the three major synthetic materials: synthetic plastics, synthetic rubber, and synthetic fibers. Further processing can produce engineering plastics and packaging materials used in the automotive, electronics, and home appliance industries.
Benzene itself is an important organic solvent used in the formulation of coatings, paints, and adhesives.
Pharmaceuticals, Pesticides, and Fine Chemicals
Aromatic hydrocarbons are the basic raw materials for synthesizing various drugs, dyes, and pesticides: Benzene can be used to synthesize dyes and drugs; toluene can be used to prepare trinitrotoluene (explosives), coatings, and adhesives; xylene can be used to synthesize plastics and synthetic fibers; terephthalic acid and other aromatic hydrocarbon derivatives are important intermediates in pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and photosensitive materials, with derivative products covering multiple categories such as pharmaceutical intermediates and pesticide technicals.
Chemical and Special Process Auxiliary Applications
Toluene can form an azeotrope with water, and distillation can remove trace amounts of water from organic systems, a commonly used solvent dehydration method in laboratories and industry; Xylene can be used to displace moisture after cleaning electronic components, assisting in the drying process; The active ingredient in traditional mothballs (camphor balls) is naphthalene, utilizing its volatility to repel moths and insects.