Activity of Zeolitic Catalysts

Abstract

Approximately nine‐out‐of‐ten chemical processes worldwide utilize heterogeneous catalysts currently, where selectivity for the shape/size of the reactant, product or intermediate together with stability are the vital aspects. Combination of selectivity and stability for zeolites offers unique structural and chemical features that can be beneficial for many commercially important reactions/processes. Typically, the introduction of zeolites into refinery operations has been revolutionary as it resulted in a significant increase in gasoline yield from catalytic cracking; zeolite catalysts are selective for the formation of light olefins from methanol and syngas and the production of chemicals and fuels for renewable carbon sources; the applications of zeolite catalysts for environmental protection offer good opportunities to develop selective catalytic reduction of harmful gases. In this chapter, an overview of the current and potential applications of zeolites as catalysts in academic and commercially important chemical industry reactions/processes is summarized.