AdBlue® for Railway Trains

AdBlue consumption for locomotives

• Fuel consumption is about 1 litre per kilometer
• AdBlue consumption is about 3 % to 5 % that of diesel, depending on speed and weather conditions

This calculation is made for a train travelling 800 km/day and transporting about 400 000 passengers per year.

How to arrange AdBlue supply? What storage equipment is needed?

Yara can offer you:

• Installation of AdBlue tanks or minibulk tanks at your depot, or at any point of the network that allows trains to refill.
• Delivery of bulk supply directly to your site depending on your needs. We can also install a telemetry system that monitors your storage level and allows you to be replenished in a timely manner, without fear of shortage.

Our expertise as a partner that already provides AdBlue to SCR diesel locomotives

Our dedicated brand of AdBlue, Air1, that has been produced since 2004 and supplying locomotives in the rail sector since 2010.

We are the leading AdBlue producer in the world. We supply the global markets with AdBlue from our plants in Europe, including our Sluiskil plant in the Netherlands; which is the world’s largest AdBlue production site in the world. Yara has been a leading player in the market since 1993 and worked with OEMs to define what AdBlue would be.

To ensure good performance in your SCR locomotive, make sure you use only AdBlue that comes from a reliable source and uncontaminated urea, such as Yara’s brand, Air1.

Yara also has its own logistics network dedicated to AdBlue, to ensure the quality and compliance of AdBlue which we market under the Air1 brand. Our factories and our supply chain are subject to regular audits to monitor the quality of AdBlue that we sell.

Our commercial team in the UK & Ireland will share their experience and knowledge of AdBlue with railway networks operator, to guide them in the use of AdBlue.

Legislation in the UK & Ireland

There are currently only a few diesel locomotives in the world that are equipped with SCR systems, which need AdBlue. At European level, there are on-going discussions on applying limits to NOx emissions of trains. This is linked to the revision of the NRMM Directive on non-road vehicles. Locomotives come under this European Directive that will soon be implemented in the UK & Ireland.

Some European countries, such as Sweden, have national legislation that limit the NOx emissions. This country is particularly advanced in this area. Its rail network must ensure that any new diesel locomotive is equipped with SCR system for the control of NOx.