On reducing NOx emissions

Significant local and global legislation now aims to reduce greenhouse gases (GHG) carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide, in the atmosphere, thereby improving air quality and reducing the problem of global warming. The Kyoto Treaty, ratified by 54 nations in 1997, calls for "a substantial worldwide reduction of greenhouse gases".

At Yara, we take our role as global citizens very seriously. As such, we are committed to an extensive R&D programme to create the best products and services to minimize harm to the environment. In light of this commitment, we have been working for a number of years to develop products that reduce levels of NOx in the environment.

What is NOx?

Oxides of nitrogen, or NOx, is the term for a mixture of nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide. The primary sources of NOx are urban, in exhaust from motor vehicles and power stations, along with other industrial, commercial and residential sources that burn fossil fuels. These pollutants can be transported with wind over long distances, but are deposited with rain and dust and contribute to the environmental load of N. Though many nitrogen oxides are colorless and odorless, one common pollutant, nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), can often be seen as a reddish-brown ‘smog’ over many urban areas.

What are its effects?

NOx is implicated in a wide variety of health and environmental problems, like the formation of harmful ground-level ozone, (when it reacts with volatile organic carbon compounds) which can trigger serious respiratory problems. Other impacts from ozone include damaged vegetation and reduced crop yields, as ozone is toxic to crops, even at low concentrations.

NOx also reacts with sulphur dioxide and other substances in the air to form acids, which fall to earth as rain, fog, snow or dry particles. Acid rain damages the surfaces of vehicles and buildings and deteriorates the quality of water in rivers and lakes.

How is Yara helping to reduce NOx?

Our research into improving air quality has led to Yara becoming the largest European producer of NOx reducing agents based on urea and ammonia. Marketed under the brand names Reduktan and Air1, these products are used with SCR catalysts in both industrial plants and vehicles to dramatically reduce the amount of NOx emitted into the atmosphere.

In fact, our nitrogen-based products cleaned approximately 300,000 tonnes of NOx in 2006 - more than the total annual NOx emissions for the whole of Norway. And our continued commitment to this field of environmental activity will ensure a cleaner and healthier world in the years to come. It also helps our industrial clients meet the requirements of tightening European environmental legislation.