Nature represents an amazing source of inspiration, since it produces a great diversity of natural compounds selected by evolution, which exhibit multiple biological activities and applications. A large and very active research field is dedicated to identifying biosynthesized compounds, to improve/develop new methodologies, to produce/reuse natural compounds, and to assess their potential for pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food industries, among others, and additionally, to understand their mechanism of action. This book is dedicated to presenting the most recent results on the development of natural compounds’ applications. Ten original research works, organized by applications, and two reviews are included. Each of them contributes to the knowledge advance, insofar as they present new applications for known products, new methodologies to obtain new products, or the evaluation of a given application, with the applications related to health promotion being the most frequently considered. These works are significant contributions and reinforce the dynamic field of natural products’ applications.

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Adequate quality of life and well-being of modern societies is only achievable with sustainable manufacturing processes that efficiently use raw materials, eliminate waste, and avoid the use of hazardous materials. All this is hardly conceivable without catalysis. In a world concerned with the exploitation of natural resources, catalysis can offer direct synthesis routes that maximize resource efficiency. The Iberoamerican society is far too significant and far too involved in global development, owing to its natural richness of resources, not to have an essential role in current developments and future directions. Catalysis, in the Iberoamerican academic and industrial communities, is recognized as a relevant scientific discipline that supports several strategic industrial sectors through the manufacturing of products and materials, and the operationalization of processes to produce energy and other utilities. As a reflection of this, once every two years the Iberoamerican Congress on Catalysis takes place to share and discuss the state-of-the-art of this discipline with the Federation of Iberoamerican Catalysis Societies. This book collected sixteen outstanding contributions, stemming from this exceptional event—one which will undoubtedly mark a turning point and could be a source of inspiration to all those involved in catalysis, particularly the young generation of competent researchers taking their first steps in this incredibly complex and beautiful discipline.

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Layered double hydroxides (LDHs), also known as two-dimensional anionic clays, as well as the derived materials, including hybrids, nanocomposites, mixed oxides, and supported metals, have been highlighted as outstanding heterogeneous catalysts with unlimited applications in various processes involving both acid–base (addition, alkylation, acylation, decarboxylation, etc.) and redox (oxidation, reduction, dehydrogenation, etc.) mechanisms. This is mainly due to their flexibility in chemical composition, allowing the fine tuning of the nature of the active sites and the control of the balance between them. Additionally, LDHs display a large anion exchange capacity and the possibility to modify their interlayer space, constraining the size and type of reactants entering in the interlamellar space. Furthermore, their easy and economic synthesis, with high levels of purity and efficiency, at both the laboratory and industrial scales, make LDHs and their derived materials excellent solid catalysts. This Special Issue collects original research papers, reviews, and commentaries focused on the catalytic applications of these remarkable materials.

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Biomass is widely considered as a potential alternative to dwindling fossil fuel reserves. There is a large variety of biomass sources (oleaginous, lignocellulosic, algae, etc.), with many possible conversion routes and products. Currently, biomass is not just viewed as a source of biofuels, but also as an interesting feedstock for the production of bio-based chemicals that could largely replace petrochemicals. In this context, the search for new sustainable and efficient alternatives to fossil sources is gaining increasing relevance within the chemical industry. There, the role of catalysis is often critical for the development of clean and sustainable processes, aiming to produce commodity chemicals or liquid fuels with a high efficiency and atom economy. This book gathers works at the cutting edge of investigation in the application of catalysis, for the sustainable conversion of biomass into biofuels and bio-based chemicals.

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