Is gold used like platinum in automotive catalytic convertors, for controlling exhaust emissions or in fuel cells?
It has recently been shown that with catalysts that use gold in combination with platinum and palladium, emissions from diesel engines can be reduced by up to 40%. World Gold Council is supporting the development of this technology through its partnership with the technology inventor, Nanostellar Inc. www.nanostellar.com. In addition, a number of companies have patented technologies based on the use of gold for cleaning impurity gases from hydrogen used to power fuel cells. Impurities like carbon monoxide reduce the efficiency of the fuel cell and it maybe that the use of gold in this application helps fuel cells to become more efficient and commercially viable.
