AdBlue® is a light, almost colourless an extremely high purity aqueous urea solution, 32.5% urea(Automotive Specification) and 40% urea (Marine Specification) that transforms nitrogen oxides into nitrogen (N2) and water vapour (H2O) by means of chemical reduction, for Euro 5 and Euro 6 diesel powered vehicles. Exhaust Fluids Australia manufactures AdBlue® to international standards as set by Verband der Automobilindustrie e.V and the American Petroleum Institute.

      Content of various metals must not exceed 0.2 mg/kg for each of them so to not contaminate the catalytic converter. This means DEF cannot be substituted by urea used in agriculture. The composition and quality standards are regulated by ISO 22241. DEF is an odourless, colourless synthetic product: it is not considered a dangerous substance in as much as it's neither flammable nor toxic.

      How does AdBlue® Work?
Adblue is stored in a separate tank to your diesel tank. A sensor located in your exhaust system accurately measures the amount of AdBlue® to be injected into your SCR system via a computer to ensure the exhaust gases are safely converted into nitrogen and water.

This combustion process occurs during the normal driving of your truck, passenger car or any diesel powered engine fitted with the SCR (selective catalytic reduction) system.

       Is there Legislation for the use of AdBlue®?

Euro 4 was introduced in 2005 in the EU and in Australia in 2005. It was designed to limit the amount of exhaust gases emitted from HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicles), specifically Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) and particle matter (PM). Euro 4 was replaced by Euro 5 in 2009 and the legislation is again revised to Euro 6 in 2014. Each upgrade will ensure our exhaust emissions are lowered to meet the stringent controls to reduce the effects of international standards.

The principle underlying catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxides SCR technology has been in use since the early '80s in thermal and fossil fuel power stations, on gas turbines, locomotive diesel engines and large marine power units. In all these applications combustion is optimised with the dual aim of achieving improved performance and direct reduction of particulate emissions. Post-treatment is based on a simple principle: the chemical reaction of ammonia (NH3) with the nitrogen oxides NO and NO2 to produce two harmless substances – water vapour (H2O) and nitrogen (N2). These are the relevant formulas:

NO + NO2 + 2 NH3 2 N2 + 3 H2O

And for any residual oxygen present in the exhaust gases

4 NO + O2 + 4 NH3 4 N2 + 6 H2

O6 NO2 + 8 NH3 7 N2 + 12 H2O

In very large systems ammonia is drawn directly from pressurised tanks. With regards to road vehicles, the use of pure ammonia has been studied but in the end was abandoned because of problems of storing it on board trucks and in refilling stations. The normalised urea technique in the form of a solution was preferable for two reasons: this product is not categorised as a dangerous substance, there is no danger in the event of spills and it's easy to store both on board vehicles and at transporter premises, despite the limitation that it crystallises at temperatures below -11°C.