Properties of functional solid catalysts and their characterization using various analytical techniques

In recent decades, significant efforts have been directed toward the development of catalytically functional inorganic materials with excellent control over their surface, textural, structural, and porous properties. A great deal of attention has been paid to the exploration of these novel “engineered catalysts” and understanding their catalytic role in biomass conversion. An advanced level of understanding of these catalysts is important as compared to the conventional catalytic processes in designing a catalyst for specific biomass conversion into desired products. Wide variation of biomass composition, biomass-derived chemicals composition, and other competing chemical processes affect the catalyst properties and make this process complex. Characterization of these catalysts using latest spectroscopic, microscopic, and other analytical techniques is a potential approach to understand and design the composition, structure, proportions of different phases, surface composition, size of the individual units, pore structure, total surface area, and other textural properties of the catalyst suitable for specific biomass utilization. In majority of the biomass valorization reactions, catalysts often tend to undergo progressive deactivation and coking, limiting the lifetime of the catalyst, which is a parameter of considerable economic significance. Advanced spectroscopic and thermo-analytical techniques can provide an understanding of the catalyst-deactivation mechanism, which can help to develop regeneration methods to restore the activity of the catalyst fully or partly. This chapter covers analytical techniques of functional solid catalysts.