Catalysis and Chemical Engineering Global Conference

Catalysis is one of the building blocks of chemical engineering, and thousands of reactions that are needed in modern industry owe it as a means to work.

Catalysis simply means the process of enhancing the rate of a chemical reaction by adding a substance known as a catalyst that itself remains unchanged after the reaction. Catalysts provide a progress in milder conditions, hence saving energy and enhancing efficiency—something critical in the petrochemical and pharmaceutical industries and environmental management.

Fundamentally, catalysis can be broadly divided into two types: homogeneous and heterogeneous. In the case of homogeneous catalysis, the catalyst is in a phase that is identical with that of the reactants, usually in liquid or gaseous states, so that easy interaction as well as reaction takes place. On the other hand, heterogeneous catalysis is a process that involves a catalyst that is in a different phase compared to the reactants, where it appears as a solid in contact with liquid or gaseous reactants. This type of catalysis finds extensive industrial applications because it is stable and can be reused.

Mechanism of Catalytic Action

Generally, catalytic action involves the adsorption of reactants on the surface of a catalyst and reaction into products with desorption back into the reaction environment. This entails lowering the activation energy; hence, reactions are faster or occur at lower temperatures.

Catalysts can also have some selectivity; in a complicated reaction, they could influence the reaction to favor a particular product. The recent research in catalysis is directed to nano-catalysts and biocatalysts, which are tailored for higher activity and specificity.

For example, enzyme or biocatalysts based catalysts are of great importance in biological processes and increasingly subject to interest in environment-friendly industrial processes as they are biodegradable. With a foundation in the fundamentals of catalysis, it becomes possible to study the advanced topics related to catalysis. Future developments in novel catalysts with high efficiency will extend this horizon of catalysis application and forever sear the chemical process into the very heart of sustainable industrial practices.