Jodhpur: A team from IIT Jodhpur’s chemistry department has developed a catalytic converter for cars using Rajasthani clay which will be cheaper and more effective in reducing pollution, a professor claimed Monday.
A catalytic converter is a device which is fitted to a vehicle’s exhaust to reduce the pollutants coming from it.
Rakesh K Sharma, an IIT Jodhpur professor who led the team, said the catalytic converter was developed by extracting Iron-Nickel-Cobalt nanoparticles from Rajasthani clay.
The clay acts as an oxygen reservoir and make the pollutants less harmful, he said.
“The catalytic converters in use have expensive rare earth elements — Palladium and Cerium — in them and their life span is about 10 years against an approximate 15 year life of a four wheeler,” Sharma said.
“We had three challenges — reduction of temperature, replacement of Palladium and Cerium and redesigning the convertor —,” the professor said, adding that Rajasthani clay turned out to be a perfect solution.
PTI