| Catalysts
Division - Research & Development
New product development in the Environmental Catalysts
and Technologies (ECT) business is driven by ever tightening emissions
legislation around the world and we continue to invest in scientists
and state of the art equipment for the development and testing of
catalysts to meet customers’ needs. Through this investment,
Johnson Matthey has become a leader in diesel emission control technologies
for both heavy and light duty diesel applications including catalysed
soot filter technology for removal of particulate matter from diesel
exhausts. We also continue to invest in the development of improved
products for the treatment of exhaust from gasoline engines.
Johnson Matthey has invested in ECT’s R&D
facilities during the year to meet the demands of planned new emissions
regulations around the world. 2007/08 will see the completion of
expansions at our Royston, UK and Gothenburg, Sweden facilities
and of the R&D centre at our new facility in Korea.
Process Catalysts and Technologies’ key areas
of focus for research remain in the hydrocarbon to products and
fuels areas and we are engaged in a number of specific projects
aimed at process improvement and enhancing catalyst performance.
The process technology expertise of Davy Process Technology complements
our broad palette of catalyst manufacturing and development tools
to provide a very potent mix through which we aim not only to develop
improvements to existing chemical processes but also achieve significant
world scale step changes in technology. R&D programmes include
those focused on improving the design and efficiency of our gas
heated reforming technology to offer higher efficiencies in syngas
based processes such as gas to liquids and methanol manufacture.
In the fine chemicals and pharmaceuticals areas we
also continue to invest in R&D projects directed towards both
new product development and process efficiency improvements.
During the year the Fuel Cells business completed
a major project on advanced membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs)
for automotive applications funded in part by the UK Department
of Trade and Industry (DTI) and has collaborated with a number of
other DTI funded potential UK suppliers. This work has demonstrated
significant improvements in the durability of key components at
the heart of the MEA, such as the membrane. Using our own composite
design, we have achieved a five fold improvement in membrane durability
under automotive test cycles and other improvements have reduced
the cost of the substrates and catalysts used in MEAs by a factor
of five while maintaining or improving performance. Collaboration
with new suppliers able to assist our future product development
(including many from outside the fuel cell technology industry)
will have lasting benefits to the long term competitiveness of our
fuel cells business.
Methanol fuelled fuel cells have in the past required
much higher loadings of platinum catalyst than their hydrogen fuelled
counterparts and during the year we have made significant progress
in lowering these loadings without compromising performance. Working
with international suppliers has allowed us to offer MEAs for methanol
fuelled fuel cells with improved membranes based on hydrocarbons,
as well as traditional fluorinated materials.
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