The matrix is usually a high molecular weight polymer such as polyacrylamide, cellulose, starch, glass, beads, etc.
The common use of crude enzyme preparation in the production of wine, cheese or in tanning to obtain the desired product is known for long time. Their use as catalysts was limited, however, due to their limited availability, instability and the consequent high cost. This limitation has been largely overcome by the immobilization of enzyme on a support, a phenomenon reported for the first time by J.M. Nelson and E.G. Griffin (1916).They reported the adsorption (immobilization) of invertase on charcoal/alumina without loss of activity. However, the technique of enzyme immobilization could be established only after a lapse of about 40 years, when between 1954 and 1961 many researchers developed relevant procedures and the equipments.
Some of the advantages of using immobilized enzyme over free enzyme are as follows: