Mullite reduces the pollution produced by diesel vehicles

In a study published in the 17 August issue of Science, researchers found that pollution is up to 45 per cent lower when a man-made version of the oxide mullite replaces platinum in diesel catalytic converters.

‘Many pollution control and renewable energy applications require precious metals that are limited — there isn’t enough platinum to supply the millions and millions of automobiles driven in the world,’ said Dr Kyeongjae ‘KJ’ Cho, professor of materials science and engineering and physics at the University of Texas at Dallas and a senior author of study. ‘Mullite is not only easier to produce than platinum, but also better at reducing pollution in diesel engines.’

In 2003, Cho became a co-founder and lead scientist at Nanostellar, a company created to find catalysts through a material design that would replace platinum in reducing diesel exhaust.

According to a statement, his company designed and commercialised a platinum-gold alloy catalyst that is a viable alternative to platinum alone but, until this experiment with mullite, had not found a catalyst made of materials that were less expensive to produce.