Intensive research on zeolites, during the past thirty years, has resulted in a deep understanding of their chemistry and in a true zeolite science, including synthesis, structure, chemical and physical properties, and catalysis. These studies are the basis for the development and growth of several industrial processes applying zeolites for selective sorption, separation, and catalysis. In 1983, a NATO Advanced Study Institute was organized in Alcabideche (portugal) to establish the State-of-the-Art in Zeolite Science and Technology and to contribute to a better understanding of the structural properties of zeolites, the configurational constraints they may exert, and their effects in adsorption, diffusion, and catalysis. Since then, zeolite science has witnessed an almost exponential growth in published papers and patents, dealing with both fundamentals issues and original applications. The proposal of new procedures for zeolite synthesis, the development of novel and sophisticated physical techniques for zeolite characterization, the discovery of new zeolitic and related microporous materials, progresses in quantum chemistry and molecular modeling of zeolites, and the application of zeolites as catalysts for organic reactions have prompted increasing interest among the scientific community. An important and harmonious interaction between various domains of Physics, Chemistry, and Engineering resulted therefrom.

Inhalt
I. Synthesis.- Some thermodynamic and kinetic effects related to zeolite crystallization.- Organic and inorganic agents in the synthesis of molecular sieves.- Non-conventional crystalline microporous solids.- Molecular engineering of lamellar solids. I. Principles derived from the pillaring of smectite clays.- Molecular engineering of layered structures II. Synthetic approaches to some new pillared derivatives.- II. Characterization.- General overview of the characterization of zeolites.- Sorption of single gases and their binary mixtures in zeolites.- Frequency-response measurements of diffusion of sorbates in zeolites.- Diffraction Studies of zeolites.- Spectroscopic investigations of zeolite properties.- The impact of NMR spectroscopy in molecular sieve characterization I. Low Si/Al ratio materials.- The impact of NMR spectroscopy in molecular sieve characterization II. Investigations of highly siliceous systems.- III. Modification, Reactivity, and Catalytic Activity.- Modification of zeolites and new routes to ion-exchange.- Zeolite framework substitution reliable characterization methods.- Evaluation and tailoring of acid-base properties of zeolites Part 1.- Evaluation and tailoring of acid-base properties of zeolites Part 2.- Catalysis by exchanged cations and zeolite framework sites.- Zeolites in oil refining and petrochemistry.- Composition of the carbonaceous compounds responsible for zeolite deactivation. Modes of formation.- Deactivation of zeolites by coking. Prevention of deactivation and regeneration.- IV. Novel Developments and Vistas.- Molecular sieves with pore openings consisting of more than 12-T atoms.- Chemical bonding in zeolites.- Some aspects of molecular shape-selective catalysis with hydrocarbons in zeolites.- New applications of nonclassical molecular sieve catalysts.- Enzyme mimicking with zeolites.- Microporous materials in organic synthesis.- Concluding Remarks.- List of Participants.