Atoms and molecules in all states of matter are subject to continuous irregular movement. This process, referred to as diffusion, is among the most general and basic phenomena in nature and determines the performance of many technological processes.

This book provides an introduction to the fascinating world of diffusion in microporous solids. Jointly written by three well-known researchers in this field, it presents a coherent treatise, rather than a compilation of separate review articles, covering the theoretical fundamentals, molecular modeling, experimental observation and technical applications.

Based on the book Diffusion in Zeolites and other Microporous Solids, originally published in 1992, it illustrates the remarkable speed with which this field has developed since that time.

Specific topics include: new families of nanoporous materials, micro-imaging and single-particle tracking, direct monitoring of transient profiles by interference microscopy, single-file diffusion and new approaches to molecular modeling.

Jorg Karger was educated at the University of Leipzig where, in 1994, he was appointed Professor of Experimental Physics and Head of the Department of Interface Physics. To promote the subject he organized a series of popular lectures with demonstration experiments that attracted considerable attention and even an entry in the Guinness Book of Records for the largest bicycle bell orchestra! He is the founding editor of the on-line journal/conference series Diffusion Fundamentals (2005) and co-author of the first edition of the present book (Wiley, New York, 1992). He has received the Gustav-Hertz Prize of the German Physical Society (1978), the Donald Breck Award of the International Zeolite Association (1986) and the Max Planck Research Award (1993). He was elected to the Saxonian Academy of Sciences in 2000.

Douglas Ruthven was educated at the University of Cambridge. He served as a professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of New Brunswick, Canada (1966 - 1995) and at the University of Maine (1995 - 2010) where he was Chair of the Chemical Engineering Department. In addition to the fi rst edition of the present book (Wiley, New York, 1992) he is the author of Principles of Adsorption and Adsorption Processes (John Wiley, New York, 1984), co-author of Pressure Swing Adsorption (Wiley-VCH, New York, 1994). His awards include the Max Planck Research Award (1993), a Century of Achievement Award from the Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering (1997) and a Humboldt Senior Fellowship (2002). He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1989.

Doros Theodorou is Professor of Chemical Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens. After obtaining his Diploma at NTU Athens and his M.S. (1983) and PhD (1985) from M.I.T., he taught for nine years at the University of California, Berkeley, resigning as full professor to return to Greece in 1995. He was among the first to exploit the power of numerical simulation to study adsorption kinetics and equilibria. His recent research has focused on the development and application of new, hierarchical computational methods for understanding and predicting the properties of materials from their chemical constitution. His work has been recognized by a Presidential Young Investigator award from the National Science Foundation (USA) (1988 - 1992), the 1996 Bodossakis Award for Chemistry, and the Danckwerts Lectureship (2006) awarded by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. He is a member of the National Council of Research and Technology of Greece.