4. Main recent improvements

The main trends observed over the last decade in the processing of aromatic essences are :

• significant growth (a few new aromatic complexes per year), production capacity in Asia and the Middle East;

• an increase in production capacity at sites under construction. In ten years, the typical capacity of a new aromatics complex has risen from around 300,000-400,000 t pX/year to around 1 million tonnes pX/year, with an average capacity of 200-250 kt pX/year;

• the emergence of Chinese technologies, catalysts and adsorbents, particularly on the Asian market.

From a technical point of view, the improvements and refinements developed in recent years for the aromatic complex relate more specifically to the following points:

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