Blue Tec Fluid

2.5 gal DEF jug at Walmart is $7.88 in their house brand. There is no good, better, best like there is with other products. It's all the same. It simply meets a standard. I use about 4 or 5 jugs a year driving around 18K miles a year.

Johnny Hurryup wrote:
I've heard that all 2013 diesels require the blue tec fluid. How much cost does that add to your driving. Also how many gallons of diesel does one gal of the stuff treat? Thanks in advance

2.5 gallons of DEF at a auto parts store is often less than $10.

and DEF useage is about 1.0%-1.2% of diesel consumption, so around 1 gallon of DEF for every 80-100 gallons of diesel. So, if you are towing and getting 10mpg you will use about 1 gallon of DEF in 1000miles, or $4.00/1000 miles or .4 cents/mile.

using DEF instead of EGR to reduce NOx probably increased the fuel economy by more than the cost of the DEF fluid.

And bluetec is on brand name. ALL DEF fluid MUST be the exact same formulation. So cost variation is in the packaging and advertizing.

Now DEF is available at most truck stop with a Diesel island. One hose for Diesel, one for DEF, probably most used by truckers.

The best way to go is a full delete so long as you don't have an emission check. That or drive and farm with pre tier 4 diesels.

Not one of my 4 diesels have any emission junk on them.

It's all lowest bidder garbage anyway.

NRALIFR wrote:
What I believe he means is that pre-DEF Diesels that had DPF’s used massive amounts of EGR to control the combustion temperature. EGR works, but it sure comes at a heavy price in added problems and reduced reliability. I’ll be glad when EGR goes away entirely.

:):)

Yep, lots of recycled exhaust soot to plug up emission components and contaminate crankcase oil..Strategy was to reduce NOx by reducing peak combustion temps - DEF is a far better way to go...

agesilaus wrote:
From my perspective what makes it worth it is that DEF treats the majority of NOx chemically rather than mechanically by punting to under hood emissions components, thereby reducing engine soot.
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Not sure what punting means off the football field. I am a retired Environmental Chemist with 32 years experience. In the place I worked we bought 50% DEF by the tank truck load weekly. It works by decomposing to Ammonia and Carbon Dioxide gas when heated. The Ammonia reacts with a catalyst and with the NOx to form Nitrogen gas and water. End of problem.

Yep, you just validated my point of ‘chemically treating’ - a far better option than relying strictly on (punting to) previous strategies...End of (NOx) problem...

What I believe he means is that pre-DEF Diesels that had DPF’s used massive amounts of EGR to control the combustion temperature. EGR works, but it sure comes at a heavy price in added problems and reduced reliability. I’ll be glad when EGR goes away entirely.

:):)

From my perspective what makes it worth it is that DEF treats the majority of NOx chemically rather than mechanically by punting to under hood emissions components, thereby reducing engine soot.
--------------------------------------------------------
Not sure what punting means off the football field. I am a retired Environmental Chemist with 32 years experience. In the place I worked we bought 50% DEF by the tank truck load weekly. It works by decomposing to Ammonia and Carbon Dioxide gas when heated. The Ammonia reacts with a catalyst and with the NOx to form Nitrogen gas and water. End of problem.

agesilaus wrote:
They require Diesel Emission Fluid aka DEF which is 30% Urea. One company has branded their stuff: BlueDEF but I never noticed that it was blue, and it is the most expensive. It does come in a blue box. And lastly it is no different than the generic DEF like Walmart's or the stuff sold at some truck stops.

Buying the cheap stuff costs $6-7/2.5 gallons and will last thousands of miles. The extra cost is minimal, a few cents a mile. Worth it to reduce NOx emissions which are a major contributer to smog.

From my perspective what makes it worth it is that DEF treats the majority of NOx chemically rather than mechanically by punting to under hood emissions components, thereby reducing engine soot.

They require Diesel Emission Fluid aka DEF which is 30% Urea. One company has branded their stuff: BlueDEF but I never noticed that it was blue, and it is the most expensive. It does come in a blue box. And lastly it is no different than the generic DEF like Walmart's or the stuff sold at some truck stops.

Buying the cheap stuff costs $6-7/2.5 gallons and will last thousands of miles. The extra cost is minimal, a few cents a mile. Worth it to reduce NOx emissions which are a major contributer to smog.

If you are referring to DEF, it's all the same no matter what brand. Formulation is constant across the board. Deionized, purified water and Urea in solution. It does have a shelf life so one needs to check the useable date.

I buy expired dated DEF from my lubricant supplier and mix it with water and spray it on my hayfields as a foliar innoculant. Fertilizer is fertilizer and urea in solution can be used in plant uptake by direct methods.

It all has a blue tint. That comes about by the solution urea. Urea imparts a light blue tint.