The automobile catalyst as an important source of PGE in the environment

Abstract

Both European Directive 94/12/EEC and recent EPA legislation require the establishment by year 2000 of emission standards for passenger cars aimed at a substantial reduction in hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrogen oxides (NOx). Control and limitation of these pollutants is nowadays predominantly carried out using three-way catalytic converters (TWCs), which catalyse the transformation of these pollutants into more innocuous carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen (N2) and water (Taylor 1984, Howitt 1980).