Recovery of platinum-group metals (PGMS) from spent automotive catalysts: Part II: Automotive catalysts: Structures and principle of operation

Catalytic converters are incorporated into motor vehicle emission systems (passenger cars, trucks and other motor vehicles, as well as civil and agricultural machines, as of lately) to reduce air pollution as well as to meet the emission standards. Their purpose is to convert toxic emissions generated by combustion of liquid fossil fuels into less harmful products. In catalytic converters, rhodium is used for the reduction of gasses, whereas platinum and palladium are used for the oxidation of gasses. This paper presents the structure and operating principle of automotive catalysts in view of the fact that cars are the most prevalent motor vehicles worldwide and due to the fact that the production of cars with gasoline and diesel engines will dominate until at least 2020.