Smart Catalysts for a Changing World

This book explores the role of catalysis in enabling cleaner, more sustainable technologies across energy, environmental, and industrial sectors. Catalysis is foundational to modern civilization, influencing everything from fuel production and pollution control to pharmaceuticals and food processing. As the global community faces escalating environmental challenges and the urgent need for climate action, the development of intelligent and responsive catalytic systems has become a scientific and technological priority.

This book provides a comprehensive and forward-looking overview of the latest advances in smart catalysis, with a strong emphasis on materials design, catalytic mechanisms, and real-world applications. It highlights the emerging field of piezocatalysis, where materials like BiFeO³, BaTiO³, ZnO, and novel structures such as layered transition metal dichalcogenides and metal-organic frameworks exhibit enhanced charge separation through piezoelectric effects. These innovations are directly aligned with several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including clean water, affordable energy, responsible production, and climate action.

Structured across multiple chapters authored by leading experts, the book begins with foundational principles of catalysis and progresses through advanced topics such as multiferroic nanostructured materials, hybrid catalytic systems, and stimuli-responsive catalyst design. It explores cutting-edge fabrication techniques, theoretical modeling using density functional theory (DFT), and the integration of machine learning and AI in catalyst discovery. Applications span environmental remediation, dye and antibiotic degradation, CO² reduction, and the development of flexible, wearable, and self-powered catalytic systems.

By combining theoretical insights with practical case studies and future perspectives, this book serves as a vital resource for researchers, engineers, and students working at the intersection of materials science, catalysis, and sustainable technology.