Innovation in catalysis is inherently complex due to several factors:
Multidisciplinary Nature: Catalysis involves knowledge from chemistry, physics, materials science, and engineering. Effective innovation requires collaboration among experts from these diverse fields. Scale-Up Issues: A catalyst that works well in the laboratory might face challenges when scaled up for industrial use. Factors such as reactor design, mass transfer limitations, and heat management need to be meticulously addressed. Economic Constraints: The cost of developing new catalysts can be high. Economic feasibility studies are often necessary to ensure that the benefits outweigh the development and implementation costs. Environmental Concerns: New catalytic processes must comply with environmental regulations and strive to minimize the production of harmful by-products. This often requires extensive testing and optimization.
