Volkswagen Catalytic Converters
For some decades of years now, the problem of environmental pollution is continuously
growing and becoming more harmful and destructive especially our problem of air
pollution and that, automobiles contribute the biggest percentage of this problem.
Due to the growing number of automobiles in almost all part of the world, harmful
emissions are also growing hand and hand with it. That is why the need of finding
new technologies on how these problems will be addressed requires some urgency.
Usual chemicals emitted by the automobiles during the combustion process and
gasoline vaporization are the hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and oxides of nitrogen
which are very harmful once they mix up with the atmosphere. Several laws, rules
and regulations such as clean air act of 1977 were already passed to deal with
this worsening crisis. On the manufacturer’s part, coming up with several control
devices and the creation of a self adjusting engine are their answers to the call
for the said air pollution problem.
Among the popular emission control devices installed on the automobiles are the
EGR valve, air pump, PCV valve, charcoal canister and the catalytic converter.
Catalytic converters such as the Volkswagen catalytic converter is a device responsible
for providing an environment for a chemical reaction where unburned chemicals
takes its final combustion using platinum and rhodium as catalysts. Automotive
emissions are controlled in three ways and these are: to promote more complete
combustion to lessen by-products, to reintroduce excessive hydrocarbons back into
the engine for combustion, and to provide an additional area for oxidation or
combustion to occur, and all of these recognized by the catalytic converters.
Catalytic converters looks like mufflers, and are located in the exhaust system
just ahead of the latter. Inside the converters are pellets or a honeycomb made
of platinum or palladium which is used as catalysts that speed up chemical process.
When the chemicals mix up with the catalysts, harmful substances are turned into
less harmful ones. This process makes the exhaust dirty and the dirtier it gets,
the hotter it gets thus making the exhaust susceptible to self-destruction. |
