"the former comprises" is correct and usable in written English.
You can use it to refer to something that has already been mentioned or is implied in the context. For example: The two levels of security policy are basic and advanced. The former comprises simple password protection, while the latter adds more robust measures.
The former comprises of behavioural mapping, photographing and observation which can be considered as qualitative.
The former comprises a long barrel-vaulted chamber in the basement with its own street entrance.
The former comprises part-time soldiers, many of them veterans and technicians (including doctors).
The former comprises a group of brain areas that are generally active when you are daydreaming or resting.
The former comprises peer to peer and client server approaches while the latter regroups query federation and mediator-based solutions.
The former comprises opinion leaders such as columnists, who are generally critical of the reforms, and the business community.
Two pairs of groups were used: a STANDARD pair and a "FAKE" one: while the former comprised the current U and T groups, the latter included two non-fed groups, one injected with saline solution and the other with a dose of 4 mM OA administered 5 minutes after placing crabs in the container.
The former comprised the use of cooling blankets or ice or cold packs covering all or parts of the body, commonly in proximity to large vessels (that is, neck, groin, and axillae) [ 1].
The methodology met the proposed requirements after precision and specificity tests results, the former comprised of sensitivity and selectivity.
Their main difference concerns the way fixed flowrate units are handled, either separately or in conjunction with a fixed load operation, since the former comprise a linear subsystem.
Modern Alpine competitive skiing is divided into the so-called speed and technical events, the former comprising downhill skiing and the supergiant slalom, or super-G, and the latter including the slalom and giant slalom.
