Intermetallic Compounds: Promising Inorganic Materials for Well-Structured and Electronically Modified Reaction Environments for Efficient Catalysis

An overview of the catalytic properties of intermetallic compounds has been made to provide a comprehensive understanding regarding (1) what intermetallic catalysts can do, (2) their fundamental roles in enhanced catalysis, and (3) their advantages over other inorganic materials. A number of chemical transformations using intermetallic catalysts have been surveyed and classified into three major divisions—hydrogenation/dehydrogenation, oxidation, and steam reforming and various subsections. The fundamental roles of intermetallic phases obtained from this survey were categorized into four types of effects: (a) electronic, (b) geometric, (c) steric, and (d) ordering effects. The unprecedented steric effects governed by the specific surface structures of intermetallic compounds highlight the unique capabilities of intermetallic materials. On the basis of this overview, we have concluded that intermetallic compounds have the following advantages for fine catalyst design: (i) control of the electronic structure, (ii) a specific and ordered atomic-level structure, and (iii) homogeneity of geometric and electronic structures. Thus, intermetallic compounds are promising inorganic catalyst materials capable of creating a well-designed reaction environment and suitable for developing efficient catalytic systems.