Patent ID: 7288576

Claim:
A method of converting a chemical reactant, comprising: passing at least one reactant into a reaction chamber; wherein a catalyst is disposed within the reaction chamber; wherein the catalyst comprises: a support material having through-porosity; wherein the support material has an average pore size, as measured by microscopy, of at least 1 micrometer (·m); a layer comprising carbon nanotubes on the support material; and a surface-exposed catalyst composition; and reacting the at least one reactant in the reaction chamber to produce at least one product; wherein the reaction chamber has an interior with a cross-sectional area and the catalyst occupies at least 80% of said cross-sectional area; wherein the reaction comprises a reaction selected from the group consisting of: acetylation, addition reactions, alkylation, dealkylation, hydrodealkylation, reductive alkylation, amination, aromatization, arylation, carbonylation, decarbonylation, reductive carbonylation, carboxylation, reductive carboxylation, reductive coupling, condensation, cracking, hydrocracking, cyclization, cyclooligomerization, dehalogenation, dimerization, epoxidation, esterification, exchange, halogenation, hydrohalogenation, homologation, hydration, dehydration, hydrogenation, dehydrogenation, hydrocarboxylation, hydroformylation, hydrogenolysis, hydrometallation, hydrosilation, hydrolysis, hydrotreating, hydrodesulferization/hydrodenitrogenation (HDS/HDN), isomerization, methanol synthesis, methylation, demethylation, metathesis, nitration, partial oxidation, polymerization, reduction, steam and carbon dioxide reforming, sulfonation, telomerization, transesterification, trimerization, water gas shift (WGS), and reverse water gas shift (RWGS).