TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Catalyst: The catalyst contains 0.10-0.30 wt.% group VIII metal. Production: The catalyst is produced by (a) first ion exchange of a highly porous, crystalline aluminum silicate containing sodium (Na) to replace 97-99% of the exchangeable Na ions with alkaline earth metal (M) ions; (b) second ion exchange to replace part of the M ions with RE ions until equilibrium is attained; (c) third ion exchange with an aqueous solution of a group VIII metal complex salt until not more than 99.5% of the original exchangeable Na has been exchanged and separation of the solid; (d) treatment in a solution of a tetraalkylammonium salt to distribute the group VIII metal in the pores very finely; and (e) filtration and drying. Preferred Production: Stage (a) is carried out in 2 steps, first with a boiling concentrated, especially 0.8-1.2 M, solution of an alkaline earth metal salt to 80-90% Na exchange and then with a less concentrated, especially 0.15-0.25 M, solution at 20-30 bar and 160-200, especially 170-190degreesC to 97-98% Na exchange. The solid may be separated and washed between these steps. The solid is washed with distilled water, especially at 80-90degreesC, and dried between stages (b) and (c). A boiling solution is used for impregnation in stage (c). The material from stage (e) is applied to a support, especially gamma-alumina, optionally mixed with colloidal amorphous silica gel and pelletized by extrusion. The amount of support is limited to 10-40, especially 20-30% of the total weight of the catalyst. The pellets are dried in air with a relative humidity of 50-80%, heated at 200degreesC/hour and kept at 450degreesC for 3 hours and then cooled to room temperature in a closed container.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - ORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Process: Alkylation is carried out at 0-133, preferably 20-100, especially 40-60degreesC and 10-50 bar, using an olefin/paraffin molar ratio of 5-50, preferably 10-20 and olefin hourly space velocity (WHSV) of 0.01-20, preferably 0.1-10, especially 0.1-2/hour. The olefin is in the form of waste gas from a catalytic cracker. Preferred Definitions:    M = calcium;    a = 0.15-0.25;    b = 0.11-0.22;    c = 0.01-0.03; the aluminum silicate is a zeolite Y and    x = 1.5-3.0; or the aluminosilicate is a zeolite X and    x = 1.0-1.5;    y = 3.2-4.0    SPECIFIC COMPOUNDS - Specific examples of the olefin and paraffin used in alkylation are ethylene and iso-butane.    Specific examples of the group VIII metal are Pd, Ni or a mixture of Pd and Ni.    EXAMPLE - NaX zeolite was stirred in boiling 1 M calcium chloride solution for 1 hour, then cooled to 75-90degrees C, separated, filtered and pressed to remove excess water. Ion exchange was repeated with 0.21 M calcium nitrate solution for 3-6 hours at 20-30 bar and 180degrees C. After cooling to 80-90degrees C, the zeolite was separated, washed and pressed. This was followed by ion exchange with 0.08-0.12 M RE salt solution for 3 hours at 170-180degrees C, giving 60% exchange. 0.02-0.50 wt.% Pd was incorporated by stirring the zeolite into a complex solution (0.05 M Pd(II) and 0.1 M NH4Cl and ammonia) and boiling for 15 minutes, then stirring the material into tetraalkylammonium salt solution. After cooling, the solid was separated, washed and dried to constant mass. It could then be applied to a support and granulated by extrusion. A mixture of ethylene and isobutane in 15.7 molar ratio was passed over a bed of this catalyst at 50degrees C and 28 bar, with an ethylene WHSV of 0.13 g/h-hour. The product stream contains 3-4 wt.% 5-7 C, 4-8 wt.% 3C olefins and 87-92 wt.% 8 C alkylate. The degree of conversion of ethylene was over 94%. The stability of the catalyst was over 29 operating hours. The research octane number (RON) of the product was over 100 and the molar ratio of trimethylpentane to dimethylhexane was in the favorable range of 9-11. The selectivity for 8 C alkylate was particularly high.