The Journal of Porous Materials is an interdisciplinary and international periodical devoted to all types of porous materials. Its aim is the rapid publication of high quality, peer-reviewed papers focused on the synthesis, processing, characterization and property evaluation of all porous materials. The objective is to establish a unique journal that will serve as a principal means of communication for the growing interdisciplinary field of porous materials. Porous materials include microporous materials with <2nm pores, mesoporous materials with 2-50 nm pores and macroporous materials with >50 nm pores. Examples of microporous materials are natural and synthetic molecular sieves, cationic and anionic clays, pillared clays, tobermorites, pillared Zr and Ti phosphates, spherosilicates, carbons, porous polymers, xerogels, etc. Mesoporous materials include synthetic molecular sieves, xerogels, aerogels, glasses, glass ceramics, porous polymers, etc.; while macroporous materials include ceramics, glass ceramics, porous polymers, aerogels, cement, etc. The porous materials can be crystalline, semicrystalline or noncrystalline, or combinations thereof. They can also be either organic, inorganic, or their composites. The overall objective of the journal is the establishment of one main forum covering the basic and applied aspects of all porous materials. BACKGROUND: Over the last several years, there has been a dramatic increase in the design and synthesis, characterization and property evaluation of porous materials for catalysis, separations and sensors. The design and synthesis of porous materials is perhaps more challenging than the synthesisof dense materials because the former involve precise control of the processing parameters. Therefore, new strategies are being developed constantly for the synthesis of useful materials. NEEDS: This comprehensive journal on porous materials is justified, at this time, for the following reasons: • First, with increasing worldwide environmental concerns, the porous materials field is growing rapidly because these are the materials needed for separations of polluting species, recovery of useful species, sensors, catalysis, etc., involving numerous fields. • Second, many articles on porous materials are scattered in journals in a variety of disciplines. This new journal is expected to benefit the field of porous materials by providing a single forum where they are dealt with. • Third, this is truly an interdisciplinary field that will bring together chemists, materials scientists, ceramists, chemical engineers, biologists and agricultural scientists with different perspectives and ideas. SCOPE: The scope covers, but is not limited to, the following topics: • Synthesis, processing, characterization and property evaluation; • Tailoring by physical and/or chemical treatments; • Fundamental Properties, such as liquid-solid, solid-solid phase transitions in pores, effects of confinement on gases, liquids and organic molecules, adsorption, ion exchange and sieving, molecular sieving, etc. • Applications including optical, electronic devices, catalysis, waste disposal, selective separation and fixation of hazardous and radioactive ions and hazardous organic species, biological materials and implants, porous sensors, porous membranes for filtration of gases, liquids or melts, thermal insulation, desiccation, gas storage, etc. .