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With the exception of high-performance polymers,
markets for chlorobenzenes are mature. Demand for chlorobenzenes in the United
States, Western Europe, Japan and China has been declining the past few decades
as a result of the substitution of alternative chemistry in the production
of such products as phenol, rubber chemicals and moth control agents. Growing
environmental concerns over usage in herbicides and solvents have additionally
contributed to the slow decline. Strong growth in China and growing global
demand for p-dichlorobenzene have begun to slowly stabilize this trend. Overall
demand in these regions will show small growth over the next five years.
The following pie chart shows consumption of chlorobenzenes in these four
major regions:
Monochlorobenzene represented about 58% of chlorobenzene consumption in the
United States and 61% of consumption in Western Europe, but only 15% in Japan,
where p-dichlorobenzene is a larger factor than in the other regions. China
is the world’s largest manufacturer and consumer of monochlorobenzenes,
accounting for nearly 70% of total consumption in the four major regions.
Nitrochlorobenzene is the most significant end use for monochlorobenzene.
Nitrochlorobenzenes are consumed as intermediates in the manufacture of dyes
and pigments, rubber processing chemicals, pesticides (e.g., parathion and
carbofuran), pharmaceuticals (e.g., acetaminophen) and other organic chemicals.
o-Dichlorobenzene is a chemical intermediate consumed mostly for 3,4-dichloroaniline
in the United States, South America and Western Europe, and as an herbicide
intermediate in Japan.
The main worldwide end uses for p-dichlorobenzene are as a raw material for
polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) resins, for deodorant blocks for indoor air, and
for moth control. Polyphenylene sulfide is a growing high-performance polymer
that is produced only in the United States, Japan and China.
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