
EPA’s 2010 diesel engine emission standards will require engine manufacturers to further reduce the amount of nitrogen oxides (NOx) emitted.To reduce NOx, a small amount of urea-based solution called diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) is injected directly into the exhaust upstream of a catalyst. The DEF vaporizes and decomposes to form ammonia (NH3), which in conjunction with the SCR catalyst, reacts with NOx to convert the pollutant into nitrogen (N2) and water (H2O).