Not being a man of science or an electrical engineer, I was wondering if it is possible to test a ceramic catalyst by electric resistance? They are coated with metals that conduct electricity, so would it be possible to check a new cat, record the reading then test it again after the burn season to see if, or how much, the resistance has increased? Sorry, its pouring rain and I can't get outside!
Interesting thought, I would think it would be a very low resistance that would require a special milliohmeter or an accurate low current source. Here's a link to a DIY set up if you want to experiment. Measure very small resistances by building your own Milliohm-meter Even DIY can be costly if you aren't set up for playing with electronics. I used to have a pretty well equipped hobby shop in the basement. But I've kinda drifted away from the electronics stuff over the years.
The palladium surface doesn't necessarily wear evenly. Are you going to test each "cell" across its length ? As it is a coating, how will you know you are not simultaneously testing an adjacent or even a remote cell ? cross check across cell openings 2x, 4x, 6x ? That's a lot of cells to test before using, documenting and then retesting.
The grid is highly interconnected. Testing resistance will only inform you of the single most conductive path over the millions of potential pathways, not the average condition of the entire surface area. The standard methods of performance evaluation are pretty good.
Could you heat it up to 500 plus degrees, feed it some wood smoke and see if it turns reddish orange ?
