Combinatorial Chemistry in Heterogeneous Catalysis: A New Scientific Approach or "the King's New Clothes"?

Abstract

The spectacular success in materials science of the application of combinatorial chemistry has raised the hope that it may eventually lead to a new scientific approach to catalyst development. This method is, within the constraints of heterogeneous catalysis, merely a potentially efficient tool to be used in rational catalyst development and should not be considered an independent novel strategy towards rational catalyst design.

Keywords: Combinatorial chemistry; Correspondence; Heterogeneous catalysis; Solid-state chemistry; Structure-activity relationships; Surface chemistry.