VATIS UPDATE Article

Two researchers from University of Connecticut (UConn), the United States, have developed a technology that promises big improvements on one of the most common and important emission control tools used to protect the environment: the catalytic converter. With help from UConn’s NSF program, the pair are now well on their way to commercializing their new technology. Yanbing Guo and Pu-Xian Gao, both from UConn, created an innovative nanorod-array technology to produce a novel, low-temperature catalyst for applications in automotive and industrial emission controls.

Guo and Gao’s invention improves upon standard catalytic converters by reducing the amount of precious metals, such as platinum, rhodium, and/or palladium, that coat acres of surface area of a honeycomb ceramic core to create a chemical reaction converting noxious emissions into more environmentally friendly products. Using their patented process, high-efficiency nano-catalysts are fabricated within the converter device, improving low-temperature performance, increasing the lifetime of the converter, and potentially decreasing the price of the converter by up to 30 percent by reducing the use of precious metals.