http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/technology/10680865.htm
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"CATALYTIC CONVERTERS ARE MADE BETTER, CHEAPER"
"When Stanford University scientist KJ Cho developed a method to study the qualities of materials at the level of about 30,000 atoms, he had no idea it could help clean up the environment."
"Catalytic converters facilitate chemical reactions that convert automotive exhaust pollutants such as carbon monoxide into normal atmospheric gases such as nitrogen, carbon dioxide and water."
"After solving the platinum-replacement challenge, Nanostellar plans to move to step two: finding even lower-cost materials that will help improve on platinum's emissions-reducing qualities by reducing the amount of nitrous oxides still not tackled by catalytic converters."