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The previous Specialty Chemicals Update Program Catalysts report
included both process and emission control catalysts. The growth and business
divergence of these catalyst areas is such that it has become more effective
to prepare two reports, each addressing only one area. This report focuses
on emission control catalysts. See the SCUP Catalysts: Petroleum and Chemical
Process report for information on that area.
Environmental catalysts for emission control constituted a multibillion dollar
per year market worldwide in 2006. The importance of emission control catalysts
has been increasing as environmental concerns increase globally. Emission control
catalysts are divided into two types according to the source of emission—emission
control catalysts for mobile sources (such as automobile catalysts) and for
stationary sources (such as boilers and furnaces).
Emission control catalysts for both mobile sources and stationary sources
are expected to grow strongly all over the world through 2011. In automobile
catalysts, growth is expected in both developed regions and developing regions
during the next five years. Growth in developing regions, such as North America,
Western Europe and Japan, results mainly from more-stringent emission control
legislation, while that of developing countries, such as China, is due mainly
to increases in automobile production. On the other hand, catalysts for stationary
sources are expected to grow mainly in developed regions in the next five years
because of the more-stringent legislation enforced in these regions. In the
developing regions, demand increases are expected over the longer term because
it will take more time to enforce emission control legislation equivalent to
that in developed regions. Legislation that drives growth in catalyst consumption
in North America, Europe, Japan and China is discussed in detail in this report.
Emission control catalysts for mobile sources are based on platinum group
metals (PGM) that convert vapor emissions into carbon dioxide, nitrogen and
water. Global automotive vehicle production has increased during the last three
years; automobile production shrank in the United States and Western Europe,
while the automobile market grew robustly in Asian countries, especially China.
Catalysts for automobile emission control excluding PGMs grew more moderately.
The faster growth of autocatalysts than of automobile production was caused
by ever-stricter regulations toward zero-emissions vehicles and by an increased
number of catalyst bricks in the car. Autocatalysts are fitted to more than
90% of all new cars and light-duty vehicles sold worldwide, each car model
requiring a specifically designed catalyst. In all major vehicle manufacturing
regions, there is a shift from platinum to lower-cost palladium in autocatalyst
systems, along with a strong trend toward lower PGM contents.
Emissions from industrial process streams and stationary engine exhaust have
received increased attention by regulators and by the public, and operating
companies have been required to meet ever-more-stringent environmental regulations.
Emissions from stationary sources can contain various toxic gases (e.g., NOx,
SOx, CO, hydrocarbons and other volatile organic compounds) and particulate
matter which, if uncontrolled, can cause health problems and contribute significantly
to climate change and environmental pollution.
NOx emissions have been associated with both ozone formation and acid rain.
Removal of NOx from effluent gas streams is the largest market for catalysts
in industrial emission control. These streams include flue gases from gas turbine
engines and diesel engines used in electrical power and cogeneration plants;
refineries and chemical plants; and furnaces, boilers and incinerators.
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