SCR systems for NOx reduction in heavy duty vehicles

Air pollution has become an important worldwide problem. The European Commission credits road and water transport as the major source of NOx pollution, and of being responsible for around 50% of the total air pollution in urban areas. In Poland, around 45% of the country NOx emissions are attributed to transportation. During the last decade, the use of SCR technologies have gained popularity as a method for NOx reduction, the technology is widely considered as one of the solutions for road transport emissions. SCR technology had previously been employed in stationary plants, maritime transportation and other installations using combustion processes in which exhaust conditions are easier to control. The advance on the technology led to the introduction of the first heavy-duty vehicle with an SCR system into the market in 2004. New technologies and applications are constantly appearing, for example, SCR exhaust gas cleaning systems for reciprocating engines are still under development and compression ignition engines can be found in a number of different applications. The technology still needs to be studied and improved as constant problems and knowledge is required in issues such as urea injection, crystallization and NOx reduction efficiency. Moreover, the designs intended for heavy duty vehicles need to meet vehicle limitations and EURO emissions restrictions. This paper presents a review of the different SCR system designs derived from the various factors and regulations in the automotive industry, which have influenced the technology, along with a parametric study of a proprietary SCR system for heavy-duty application.