Diesel Exhaust Fluid - DEF
In 2000 and 2001, the EPA published the tier 2 Emission Standards for light duty and heavy vehicles, mandating that on-highway diesel and gasoline vehicles meet new strict emission control standards beginning January 1, 2010. Effective that date, no new on-road vehicles can be sold without meeting the Tier 2 emission standard: 0.2 grams of nitrogen oxide (NOx) per brake horse-power. Gasoline engines, unlike diesel engines, do not have any problem meeting these new standards.
Vehicle and diesel engine manufacturers developed Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) technology, which uses Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) to convert noxious NOx into harmless nitrogen gas. SCR technology works as follows: DEF is held in a separate storage tank on that vehicle and injected as a fine mist into the hot diesel exhaust gases. The heat breaks the urea component of DEF down into the ammonia, the actual NOx-reducing agent, passing through the catalytic converter. That ammonia then causes the diesel exhaust stream’s NOx component to become harmless nitrogen(N) gas and water vapor. The resulting diesel exhaust is no longer a pollutant since the earth’s atmosphere is already about 80% nitrogen gases.
Europe is way ahead of the DEF effort in the United States (this product is called AdBlue in Europe) as it has been mandated and in use there since 2006. NOx emissions in Europe have been reduced by 90% when DEF is used by itself and 100% when used in combination with existing diesel particulate filter technology. More than a million diesel trucks in Europe now use SCR technology and that fleet is growing by 25,000 trucks per month as new diesel trucks enter into use.
At current market shares, over 80% of commercial vehicles over 4 tons purchased in North America in 2010 will be SCR equipped. Currently in the United States about 1/4 of the on-highway heavy duty commercial truck diesel fuel demand is met at public fueling sites. The balance is met by private and governmental operated fueling sites. Yocum Oil will be a wholesale distributor to these sites.
DEF and Urea product details
DEF and AdBlue are an aqueous urea solution; a clear 32.5% nitrogen solution of high-purity urea in 67.5% demineralized water. Urea is a colorless, odorless crystalline solid. About 130 million tons of urea are produced globally each year, primarily for use as a fertilizer to supply nitrogen, an essential nutrient for plant growth.
U.S. urea consumption for transportation will probably be the urea fertilizer equivalent of about 210,000 tons in 2010, double that in 2011, and increase rapidly thereafter as older diesel engine heavy trucks, buses, cars and light trucks are replaced. Supply of urea for DEF use should not be an issue. DEF is a chemical, not a fuel or fuel additive. It is not flammable and supposedly not harmful to the skin. However, urea is corrosive and requires plated components for dispensing mechanisms. It is not a problem if spilled and disposed of in an appropriate manner. However, DEF must be stored and dispensed at fueling sites in a way to maintain a solution temperature range between 20° and 80° F. DEF freezes at 12° F and its useful storage life degrades substantially if the solution stays above 80° F for an extended period. This may present a problem for the wide temperature swings in the Twin Cities market.
North American urea producers have production facilities with capacity far in excess of DEF requirements for all vehicle types in all future scenarios and will provide a reliable supply of DEF meeting the high international quality standards required in ISO 22241-1. DEF is also very cost effective and its use should pay for itself. The estimated additional diesel engine costs using SCR technology is about $4,000 per truck. Diesel fuel annual costs savings from using DEF has proved in Europe to be at least 3%. With DEF annual usage only 2% that of total diesel fuel usage, a large commercial truck running 70,000 miles per year saves about $2,000 in diesel fuel purchases per year net of DEF costs for that same year. That means reducing NOx emissions 90-100% and saving money each year.
Polycarbonate tanks, 20 gallons in size, will be mounted on the driver’s side. The tanks will have a separate, non-magnetic, 19 mm nozzle boot. The burn rate is about 5% compared to fuel, which will let the driver travel about 6,000 miles between DEF fill-ups.
User Demand ProfilesPassenger car and light truck manufacturers serving the United States markets using SCR technology in 2010 include Mercedes-Benz, Audi, BMW, Hyundai, Jeep, Kia, Volvo, Mini Cooper, and Volkswagen.
Commercial truck manufacturers adopting SCR include Freightliner, Kenworth, Mack, Peterbilt, and Volvo.
School buses will also use SCR technology. Leading engine manufacturers using SCR include Cummins and Detroit Diesel Corp. Cars and light duty trucks will have onboard DEF storage tanks of 6 to 8 gallons. Commercial heavy duty trucks will carry 15 to 20 gallon DEF storage tanks onboard.
DEF Supply Chain
Traditional fertilizer manufacturers will produce most DEF used in the U.S. Producers include Terra Industries, Agrium, Brenntag North America, Dyno Nobel, Koch Industries, and Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan.
These producers will deliver the DEF product to major distribution points throughout the country. Yocum will be a wholesale distributor, carrying the product in everything from 1 and 2.5 gallon containers, 55 gallon drums and 275 or 330 gallon totes. Since DEF weighs 9.3 pounds/gallon, filling vehicles’ DEF tanks at a customer’s site will most likely be done via poly or stainless steel storage tanks on site for large commercial carriers. Specialized equipment and totes will be needed to meet the exacting requirements of DEF.ISO 22241-3, which specifies the materials for DEF storage and dispensing.
Storage tanks for large commercial carriers will require expensive stainless steel tanks in order to meet the exacting requirements of DEF.ISO 22241-3, which specifies the materials for DEF storage and dispensing.
Contact us to find out how this solution can work for your fleet!
Customer Service and Sales
phone: 651-739-6416 email: cst@yocumoil.com
