Zeolites and Zeotypes for Oil and Gas Conversion

Zeolite-based catalyst materials are widely used in chemical industry. In this chapter, the applications of zeolites and zeotypes in the catalytic conversion of oil and gas are reviewed. After a general introduction to zeolite science and technology, we discuss refinery applications, such as fluid catalytic cracking and hydrocracking, and also a wide variety of important petrochemical processes, such as alkylation and isomerization. The fields of low-temperature zeolite-assisted methane activation and methanol-to-hydrocarbon conversion are also covered, as well as several zeolite-catalyzed organic reactions with the aim to synthesize fine chemicals and pharmaceutical intermediates. By reviewing the processes, a wide range of catalytic functionalities are discussed, including Brønsted and Lewis acid sites, basic sites as well as metal and redox sites. The chapter continues with a discussion of the effects of zeolite-binder interactions in commercial catalysts, where the zeolite is only part of the system. We show how modern microspectroscopy methods provide detailed insight into the complex structure of these catalyst materials. Finally, we present future directions, which may include new zeolite-based processes for chemicals production or energy conversion, while new synthetic and characterization tools are envisioned to contribute to the accelerated discovery of new zeolite framework structures.