Control of Watercraft Carbon Monoxide Emissions

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The objective of this research is to establish the technical and economic feasibility of a novel catalytic technology to substantially reduce carbon monoxide (CO) emissions from engines for boat propulsion and on-board electrical generators. Boating is a popular and growing recreational activity in the United States. Government and industry statistics have shown a surprisingly high and rapidly growing incidence of carbon monoxide poisoning in boating-related activities. Carbon monoxide on boats has two primary sources; propulsion engines and electrical generators. Current engine exhaust treatment technology, typified by automobile exhaust catalytic converters, cannot achieve the exhaust CO reductions required and do not function effectively at conditions typical of marine engines. A novel catalyst technology is proposed which separates the adsorption sites for CO from those where oxygen is adsorbed, allowing extremely high destruction efficiency with extremely high exhaust gas CO concentrations. These two attributes are unique to this health application. The proposed catalytic technology will exhibit CO destruction activity orders of magnitude higher than current catalysts, allowing it to achieve target exhaust CO levels under conditions typical of marine engines. The Phase I program consists of three tasks. The first task is designed to prepare new catalyst compositions which are optimized for marine service. In the second task, these experimental catalysts are evaluated in flow reactors designed to destroy CO in a simulated marine engine exhaust gas, including tests for activity and stability against deactivation. The third task provides design and economic studies of the new technology to assess its economic feasibility compared to alternatives. The commercial product will be a catalytic converter designed specifically for marine applications, meeting constraints of CO destruction efficiency, exhaust gas composition, size and operating temperature.