Scientific Heritage of Georgii Konstantinovich Boreskov

The review is a brief summary of the great scientific heritage of Georgii Konstantinovich Boreskov, the member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and a famous Russian scientist in the field of catalysis, chemical kinetics, and chemical technology. Boreskov was a staunch proponent of the chemical theory of catalysis. He developed the main ideas of this theory in heterogeneous catalysis. These primarily include: the chemical nature of intermediate interaction between reactants and a catalyst; the key role of the bond energy of intermediate surface compounds in the rate and direction of reactions; dynamic unity of the system “reactants–catalyst”; approximate constancy of the specific catalytic activity of substances of the same chemical composition and structure. Boreskov made a significant contribution to the theory of kinetics of catalytic reactions and the development of the method of mathematical modeling. He showed the importance of the porous structure in the preparation of practical catalysts. Technologies of many processes were developed with his lead or direct participation. Ideas of the Boreskov’s theory of catalysis form the basis for the modern science of catalysis and drive its development.