Aspects of solid state chemistry have been implicated in catalytic activity for much of the century. The role of lattice defects, and in particular the significance of doping to control whether a solid exhibited n- or p-type conductivity, has been one of the central pillars for rationalising reactions at oxine surfaces with the Mars-van Krevelin mechanism dominating selective oxidation catalysis. Associated with theoretical discussions was the boundary layer theory of chemisorption and whether it was of the cumulative or depletive type (Aigrain and Dugas, Hauffe, Weisz, Stone, Kubukawa and Toyama, Germain). Some oft he earliest studies of heats of chemisorption were obtained by Garner Gray and Stone for oxygen on copper oxide in 1950 and their relevance to catalysis discussed. The Bristol School had considerable influence on this aspect of heterogeneous catalysis particularly in Europe where many groups emerged: Cimino, Zecchina, Garrone, Indovina and Collucia in Italy, Haber in Poland and Gravelle in France with the activation of alkanes being a significant theme over the last two decades. Thomas at the Royal Institution in London, with his background in high resolution electron microscopy and close association with J.S. Anderson, one of the father figures of solid state chemistry, pioneered techniques to unravel the relationship between catalyst structure and activity and therefore develop methodologies for assembling and designing new catalysts. Stimulated by his earlier work with Purnell on silicates and other layered materials Thomas turned to zeolitic materials and other microporous systems and with Catlow used modelling studies to predict the behaviour of new catalyst sq stems. Although pioneering work by Barrer in the late fifties and early sixties had laid the foundation for understanding zeolite adsorption behaviour, it was Rabo of the Union Carbide Research Institute at a Faraday Meeting in 1966 who drew attention to the advantages which zeolites had in presenting both uniform adsorption, sites and huge surface areas (1000m(2)g(-1)) and therefore their attractiveness for establishing the nature of the "active site". Ten years later PB. Weisz and C.D. Chang reported that HZSM-5 could convert methanol to gasoline. This become one of the most extensively studied reactions in catalysis with Derouane in association with Haldor Topsoe developing the TIGAS process. At the 1996 Faraday Meeting in Reading Thomas reviewed the progress made in the study of microporous materials and how through combining infrared and neutron diffraction With x-ray diffraction and absorption spectroscopies detailed atomic-level information became available.