You may not know the name but you’ve no doubt heard about the device he co-developed.
John J. Mooney, the man who helped develop the catalytic converter in the 1970s has died at his home in New Jersey.
Mooney and a colleague invented the catalytic converter and it, in turn, is credited with making internal combustion engines cleaner and more efficient and preventing billions of tons of carbon emissions from being spewed by cars, trucks and lawn mowers.
In all Mooney received 17 patents during his 43-year career with a division of the German chemical manufacturer BASF.
He daughter said the cause of death was complications from a stroke.