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JEE Advanced levelSingle correct optionDifficulty 3 of 3df049

Leaded petrol must not be used in a car fitted with a Pt-Rh catalytic converter. This is because

  1. Alead deposits on the metal surface and blocks the active sites, poisoning the heterogeneous catalyst
  2. Blead raises the activation energy of homogeneously in the gas phase
  3. Clead oxidises Pt to a soluble +4 salt which dissolves in the exhaust
  4. Dlead converts CO to so that the converter has nothing to do

Answer: A

The converter is a heterogeneous catalyst; its activity depends on free surface sites. Lead compounds from tetraethyllead adsorb irreversibly on Pt-Rh, which is catalyst poisoning. The reaction is balanced and needs the clean surface to proceed.
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