Principles of Catalysis: From historical foundations to practical reactor design and industrial applications
This classic engineering and chemistry work traces how catalysts shape reactivity, from early ideas to modern reactor design.
It surveys the big ideas, the key experiments, and the practical paths that connect theory to real-world processes such as ammonia synthesis and cyanamide production. Readers gain a broad map of catalytic science, including how catalysts influence reaction rates, equilibria, and the flow of industrial chemistry.
The volume covers theory, measurement, and application. It discusses homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis, surface effects, and the roles of promoters and poisons. It also explores specific catalytic domains—oxidation, hydrogenation, dehydration, hydrolysis, and more—alongside electrochemistry, radiance effects, and analytical catalysis. The book shows how catalysts are chosen, designed, and operated in industrial settings, with attention to scale, efficiency, and safety.
- Foundational history and theories that underlie catalytic action.
- How catalysts affect speed, equilibrium, and selectivity in chemical reactions.
- Practical details of reactor design, heat management, and process economics.
- Examples spanning ammonia synthesis, nitrides, hydrogenation, esterification, and more.
Ideal for readers interested in how chemistry becomes industrial practice, and for students and professionals seeking a broad, practical view of catalysis across theory and application.