This volume constitutes the proceedings of an international meeting held from June 28 to July 1, 1981, at Zif, Zentrum far Interdisziplin~re Forschung an der Universit~t Bielefeld, West Germany. The meeting was one of a continuing series organized through Zif on topics which transcend the boundaries of the traditional academic disciplines. The almost exponentially growing area of nitrogen fixation research fits this criterion completely. It is, however, so broad that we oriented and focused the meeting on just the chemical, biochemical, and genetic aspects to maximize the interaction among the participants and to produce a volume which would serve as a reference source for the involved researcher, the newly interested scientist and those with a more casual interest. The meeting was generously supported by Zif, the Westf~lisch Lippische Universit~tsgesellschaft, and the Fonds der Chemischen Industrie. We sincerely thank these organizations for their generosity and interest and for recognizing the importance of nitrogen fixation research for the future of mankind.

The field of transition metal catalysis has experienced incredible growth during the past decade. The reasons for this are obvious when one considers the world's energy problems and the need for new and less energy demanding syntheses of important chemicals. Heterogeneous catalysis has played a major industrial role; however, such reactions are generally not selective and are exceedingly difficult to study. Homogeneous catalysis suffers from on-site engineering difficulties; however, such reactions usually provide the desired selectivity. For example, Monsanto's synthesis of optically-active amino acids employs a chiral homogeneous rhodium diphosphine catalyst. Industrial uses of homogeneous catalyst systems are increasing. It is not by accident that many homogeneous catalysts contain tertiary phosphine ligands. These ligands possess the correct steric and electronic properties that are necessary for catalytic reactivity and selectivity. This point will be emphasized throughout the book. Thus the stage is set for a comprehensive be treatment of the many ways in which phosphine catalyst systems can designed, synthesized, and studied.

"This book is a view of enzyme catalysis by a physico-chemist with long-term experience in the investigation of structure and action mechanism of biological catalysts. This book is not intended to provide an exhaustive survey of each topic but rather a discussion of their theoretical and experimental background, and recent developments. The literature of enzyme catalysis is so vast and many scientists have made important contribution in the area, that it is impossible in the space allowed for this book to give a representative set of references. The author has tried to use reviews, and general principles of articles. He apologizes to those he has not been able to include. . ... The monograph is intended for scientists working on enzyme catalysis and adjacent areas such as chemical modeling of biological processes, homogeneous catalysis, biomedical research and biotechnology. The book can be use as a subsidiary manual for instructors, graduate and undergraduate students of university biochemistry and chemistry departments."--Pages ix-x.

Plasma catalysis is gaining increasing interest for various gas conversion applications, such as CO2 conversion into value-added chemicals and fuels, N2 fixation for the synthesis of NH3 or NOx, methane conversion into higher hydrocarbons or oxygenates. It is also widely used for air pollution control (e.g., VOC remediation). Plasma catalysis allows thermodynamically difficult reactions to proceed at ambient pressure and temperature, due to activation of the gas molecules by energetic electrons created in the plasma. However, plasma is very reactive but not selective, and thus a catalyst is needed to improve the selectivity. In spite of the growing interest in plasma catalysis, the underlying mechanisms of the (possible) synergy between plasma and catalyst are not yet fully understood. Indeed, plasma catalysis is quite complicated, as the plasma will affect the catalyst and vice versa. Moreover, due to the reactive plasma environment, the most suitable catalysts will probably be different from thermal catalysts. More research is needed to better understand the plasma–catalyst interactions, in order to further improve the applications.

Advances in Inorganic Chemistry

Industrial products that are made from, or contain, nitrogen are described in parts of some encyclopedias and standard reference works. However it is not always simple to determine from these varied sources the present status of the technology and markets for various nitrogen products. We therefore perceived a need for a text that provides a comprehensive description of: 1) products that are made from or that contain nitrogen; 2) the processes that produce these products; and 3) the markets that consume these products. I have attempted to present the material in a standardized format that should make this book easy to use and helpful to the readers. The standard format for each product is: Introduction, Process, Production, and Uses, with some variations in different chapters. This book provides information that could be used by a wide range of readers: Fertilizer companies—to evaluate different production processes and review general trends in the market. Basic chemical companies—to evaluate different production processes and review general trends in the market. Specialty chemical companies—to investigate new chemical production and/or sales opportunities and the processes that could make those sales a possibility. Chemical distributors—to obtain a feel for the general market size for some chemicals and the basic handling and distribution procedures for various chemicals. Engineering Companies—to evaluate different production processes and review general trends in the market. Engineering and Chemistry Students—to learn more about practical applications of the principals that they have experienced in their classrooms and laboratories.

Energy Resources through Photochemistry and Catalysis reviews the state of the art in the development of energy conversion devices based on catalytic and photochemical reactions. The focus is on catalysis of redox reactions and their application to the photocleavage of water, reduction of carbon dioxide, and fixation of nitrogen. Some fundamental aspects of catalysis as it relates to processes of light energy harvesting and charge separation in photochemical or photoelectrochemical conversion systems are also discussed. This monograph is comprised of 16 chapters covering light-induced redox reactions and reaction dynamics in organized assemblies such as micelles, colloidal metals, or semiconductors, together with strategies for molecular engineering of artificial photosynthetic devices. The principles of electrochemical conversion of light energy via semiconductor electrodes or semiconducting particles are also considered. Furthermore, thermodynamic characteristics for some reactions that can be utilized for storage of solar energy in the form of chemical energy are examined. The remaining chapters look at the role of porphyrins in natural and artificial photosynthesis; the use of semiconductor powders and particulate systems for photocatalysis and photosynthesis; and hydrogen-generating solar cells based on platinum-group metal activated photocathodes. This text will be a useful resource for scientists and policymakers concerned with finding alternative sources of energy.