In recent years there has been a convergence of trends in chemical reaction engineering and chemistry which have set the stage for significant advances in kinetic and thermodynamic modeling of processes. New analytical chem- istry methods, new mathematical methods, and new computational tools facilitate a more fundamental approach and a deeper understanding of chemical reactions in complex mixtures with very large numbers of com- pounds, such as petroleum fractions. This fortunate state of affairs has stimulated important new work both in academia and industrial research labs. The purpose of...