The only thing necessary for the chemical conversion to happen is the presence of heat and exhaust fumes. The operating principle of the catalytic converter is extremely simple, as there are no moving parts within the housing. We would later receive the three-way converters, which would also eliminate nitrous oxide emissions. These two-way catalytic converters focused on removing carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbons from the exhaust fumes. The act dictated that all vehicles built from 1975 had to include a two-way catalytic converter to pass the emissions test. Mooney, the catalytic converter reached the point where it could be mass-produced and satisfy the needs of the new Environmental Protection Agency’s regulation. Through further development by other engineers like Carl D. His first inventions were installed on factory smokestacks, followed by industrial forklifts and eventually cars in the mid-50s. He founded the Oxy-Catalyst company and coined the catalytic converter and cat converter terms. He was an expert in catalytic oil refinement and knew the environmental dangers of unfiltered exhausts. In the 1950s a French mechanical engineer by the name of Eugene Houdry made a significant breakthrough in the field. The first prototypes were built almost in parallel with the first automobiles and laid foundations of how a catalytic converter should work by using platinum, iridium, and palladium in a tubular cylinder housing to filter the fumes. It was clear that some form of an exhaust filter was necessary to reduce the number of emissions leaving the exhaust system. Swapping to direct-injection systems allowed for more precise administration of fuel, greater performance, and lower emissions output, but that was still not enough to satisfy the environmental standards. On top of that, through ineffective government regulation, leaded gasoline remained in use until 1996, even though unleaded gas was readily available since 1975.Ĭombine all of these factors together, and you get toxic levels of congestion in cities and a serious global environmental hazard. To make matters worse, most vehicles at that time used carburetor injection which is far from an optimal system. Lamborghini Aventador – $3,120 each (requires 2 cats)Ĭatalytic Converters – All You Need to Knowīefore catalytic converters were invented, all of the exhaust fumes created as a byproduct of the internal combustion process would get expelled directly into the open air.Here are some other really high-priced catalytic converters: According to data from 2020, the most expensive catalytic converter belongs to the Ferrari F430 with a mind-boggling $3,770 price tag. They are expensive because they are rare or have a high content of valuable metals. There are several cars that have much more expensive catalytic converters than average. Which Cars Have the Most Valuable Catalytic Converters For Scrap In The USA? Fluctuations in the precious metal markets cause the value of catalytic converters to change daily. The highest-priced catalytic converters go for upwards of $1198, however, the average is more around the range of $30 to $300 range. The lowest-priced catalytic converters are aftermarket cats, coming in at $10 each. These are accurate as of the time of this writing. To give you a general idea of how much a catalytic converter is as scrap, I looked at RRcat’s current scrap prices. Is it new or is it used? Is it aftermarket or original? How rare is it? What types of precious metals is it built with? These are the type of things that will affect the price. The value of a catalytic converter depends on a lot of variables. What Is The Current Market Value Of A Catalytic Converter As Scrap? There are a lot of contributing factors to the value of a scrap cat converter, so in this article, we’ll cover the reasons why they’re so expensive, and what kind of price range you can expect depending on the make and model of your car. For example, the 1997 Ford 9C24 PIG converter can get you up to $1072, while an average GM converter goes for $200. If you’ve got a car that is unfit for sale and you’ve got no other option but to sell it in parts, then removing the catalytic converter and selling it either as a used part or for scrap is a great idea.Ĭatalytic converters’ scrap prices range drastically, from just $10 for an aftermarket cat all the way to $1100 for large and rare models. Interestingly, the materials used in the manufacturing process make catalytic converters valuable not only for their functional purpose but also as a source of valuable materials. Catalytic converters are an ingenious invention that significantly reduces the output of harmful emissions into the atmosphere.

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