Mixed Phase Catalyst (MPC^®) Technology

We invented and own a fundamentally unique and patented material technology for the development of catalysts. Our technology significantly improves catalytic performance and is highly durable and cost-effective. We have developed unique nanostructures that are extremely thermally stable and resistant to sintering. This enables superior catalytic performance over time and at extreme temperatures. Our catalysts involve mixtures of chemical compounds, or phases, each with its own functionality. These MPC^® systems are multi-functional because of their unique nanostructures, which enable us to develop a wide range of applications for our catalytic coatings, including automotive, diesel, energy and other uses. We have also developed an innovative and sophisticated manufacturing process for coating substrates using our catalytic coatings.

Fresh Aged @ 1,000°C

Catalytic Solutions’ MPC^® family of ceramic oxide catalytic substrate coatings, and the process by which they are applied, are the result of the development and application of advanced material science by our dedicated product development team. The coatings contain patented mixed-metal oxides, produced from combinations of low-cost materials that form active and stable ceramic oxides when fired at high temperatures. In certain applications, the coatings use small amounts of platinum group metals (PGMs) together with inexpensive transition metals and lanthanides. When compounded in our coatings, their atomic structure uniquely enables the reactions necessary for high-performance catalytic converters. In addition, this material science approach provides tremendous flexibility in tailoring the performance characteristics to meet specific customer application requirements.

Other companies have experimented with these materials with uncompetitive results due to the "sintering" and loss of surface area that occurs at high temperatures. The development of our patented MPC^® nanotechnology approach to catalyst manufacture has provided critical breakthrough for the stabilization of mixed-metal oxides under the most severe conditions encountered in automotive and other catalyst applications. Further, our compounds actually stabilize the small quantity of PGMs used, prolonging their durability and requiring less PGM investment. In contrast, conventional catalytic converters must use far greater amounts of PGMs because their effectiveness declines with aging. The end benefit of MPC^® is durable catalytic converter performance, dramatic cost savings and easily customizable formulations for specific applications.

MPC^® Advantages

Although our technology has broad applicability, we have focused our commercialization efforts on environmental applications, namely automotive and diesel applications. We are currently manufacturing products in these areas and our technology has undergone extensive lab and field testing by customers in each of these markets. This testing and product history has demonstrated the following competitive advantages over existing technology:

Superior catalytic performance

Our proprietary MPC^® technology enables us to produce catalytic coatings capable of significantly better catalytic performance than previously available. We have achieved this demonstrated performance advantage by creating a catalyst using unique nanostructures with superior stability under prolonged exposure to high temperatures. This nanostructure technology enables the oxide catalysts in its compounds to resist sintering, or fusing, thereby maintaining a high catalytic surface area. As a result, in HDD and automotive applications, our catalyst formulations are able to maintain high levels of performance over time using substantially lower platinum group metals than products previously available.

Significant cost advantage

In the automotive market in particular, where platinum group metal costs represent a large portion of manufacturers’ costs, a significant benefit of our catalyst technology is that it offers performance equal to or exceeding that of competing catalytic coatings with a 30 to 80% reduction in PGM loadings.

Wide range of catalyst applications

Our proprietary technology is a design approach, as opposed to a single chemical formulation. We have developed our technology since inception as a platform that can be tailored for a range of different industrial applications. Specifically, our formulations can be tailored in two distinct ways. First, the oxide compounds used in its formulations can be adapted for specific applications by adding to them, or doping them with, a wide range of chemical elements, a process known as tuning. By contrast, the catalyst offerings of our competitors can be tuned only by adjusting the platinum group metal content. Second, we are able to vary the mixtures of compounds to create customized solutions for specific applications. These two independent design mechanisms allow for customization and optimization for different vehicle platforms within the auto industry, complex HDD equipment for the original equipment manufacturer, occupational health driven and retrofit markets, and for completely different applications in the energy sector, such as selective catalyst reduction nitrogen oxide control for industrial and utility boilers, process heaters, gas turbines and generator sets. We offer a full range of Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board verified HDD emission control products.

Proven durability

Our products and systems have undergone substantial laboratory and field testing by our existing and prospective customers and have demonstrated their durability and reliability in a wide range of applications in actual use for many years. In addition, our products and systems have achieved numerous certifications and match or exceed industry standards.

Manufacturing process

We have developed an innovative and sophisticated manufacturing process for coating substrates using our MPC^® catalytic coatings.  Our manufacturing process consists of mixing specially formulated catalytic coatings, applying the coatings to ceramic substrates, then firing the coated substrates in a furnace. The process of mixing and applying the various types of coatings onto high cell density substrates is complex and requires sophisticated manufacturing technology. We have been manufacturing automotive catalysts since 1999. Our first generation manufacturing line, currently producing coated substrates for several vehicles, has satisfied all requirements for process control, accountability and quality required by our automotive customers. Our second generation line has process control up to three times better than our first generation line and operates at significantly higher throughput. Our manufacturing lines are designed to provide a high level of quality control at every step of our unique manufacturing process.