Catalysis role for sustainable industrial development in Egypt with prospective Yasser M. Fahmy * National Research Center, Chemical Engineering and Pilot Plant Department, Dokki, Egypt Abstract Catalysis is of crucial importance for chemical, petrochemical, petroleum refining, energy and environmental sectors. The paper discusses not only the prospective role of catalysis for sustainable industrial development in Egypt by considering new trends but also the capabilities of catalysis research groups in Egypt in providing integrated plan for catalysis framework. q 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Egypt; Overview; Catalysis role; Sustainable development 1. Introduction The Republic of Egypt is located in northeastern Africa and Sinai Peninsula, southwestern Asia. It is bounded on the north by the Mediterranean Sea, on the east by the Red Sea, on the south by Sudan, and on the west by Libya. Less than 10% of the land area of Egypt is under cultivation. Egypt is a significant non-OPEC energy producer, in addition; the Suez Canal and summed pipeline are two routes for Persian Gulf oil, making Egypt’s geographic location a strategic focal point in world energy markets. Natural gas is a major energy resource in Egypt with a reserve level of nearly 7.3 billion barrels of oil equivalent. It is anticipated that natural gas would play an important role in the future. Egypt has recorded significant improvements in the economic situation since the early 19th century. The Egyptian government is working in the direction of privatization by selling the public sector. Chemical and petroleum industries constitute important sectors in Egypt. One of the most important factors for improving these sectors is the catalytic technology used in Egypt. Catalysis is of crucial importance for chemical, petrochemical, pet- roleum refining, energy and environmental sectors to achieve sustainable industrial development in Egypt. It plays an essential role in the manufacture of a wide range of products, from gasoline and plastics to fertilizers and herbicides, which would otherwise be unobtainable or prohibitively expensive. The number of catalysts used in industry is very large and they come in many different forms, from heterogeneous catalysts in the form of porous solids over homogeneous catalysts dissolved in the liquid reaction mixture to biological catalysts in the form of enzymes. The present paper discusses the role of catalysis for sustainable industrial development in Egypt with the perspective of considering new trends in catalysis. The paper is organized into eight sections. The first section starts with a brief description of the Egyptian industry. It is followed with a description of the catalytic processes in ammonia fertilizers plants within the chemical industry sector. Section 3 describes catalysis in the refining sector. Section 4 demonstrates possible maximum utilization of natural gas conversion to petrochemicals. Section 5 describes the prospective role of catalysis for utilization of the agriculture waste as integration biomass gasification with fuel cells for rural areas as well as producing hydrogen as a clean fuel within energy sector. Section 6 demonstrates the new application of environmental catalysis within the environmental sector for environmental protection. Section 7 discusses the possibility of using the catalysts to convert renewable feedstocks to industrial products. Section 8 discusses the capabilities of catalysis research groups in Egypt by providing integrated plan for catalysis framework for sustainable industrial development in Egypt. 2. Overview of Egyptian industry The Egyptian industry has gone through three major stages, the first during the foreign occupation period in 0166-4972/$ - see front matter q 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.technovation.2003.10.006 Technovation 25 (2005) 645–655 www.elsevier.com/locate/technovation * Tel.: þ20-1226-143-71; fax: þ 20-1233-709-31. E-mail address: ymfahmy@yahoo.com