Exhaust emissions and fuel economy improvements through thermal performance control in a novel three-way catalytic converter

This paper reports an investigation into the performance of a multi-chamber catalytic converter (MCCC). The MCCC design uses internal insulation layers within a standard automotive catalytic converter to control the radial propagation of thermal energy. By retaining more energy within the monolith core, the emissions are reduced over the drive cycle, allowing for a reduction of precious metals use and a smaller catalytic converter. An additional benefit is a reduction in back pressure as a result of suppressing turbulence within the converter, which translates into an improvement in fuel economy of up to 15%.