Relative tilting theory in abelian categories I: Auslander-Buchweitz-Reiten approximations theory in subcategories and cotorsion pairs

Abstract: In this paper we introduce a special kind of relative (co)resolutions associated to a pair of classes of objects in an abelian category $\mathcal{C}.$ We will see that, by studying these relative (co)resolutions, we get a possible generalization of a part of the Auslander-Buchweitz approximation theory that is useful for developing $n$-$\mathcal{X}$-tilting theory in [4]. With this goal, new concepts as $\mathcal{X}$-complete and $\mathcal{X}$-hereditary pairs are introduced as a generalization of complete and hereditary cotorsion pairs. These pairs appear in a natural way in the study of the category of representations of a quiver in an abelian category [5]. Our main results will include an existence theorem for relative approximations, among other results related with closure properties of relative (co)resolution classes and relative homological dimensions which are essential in the development of $n$-$\mathcal{X}$-tilting theory in [4].