Faurecia takes stake in Amminex
17 January 2011
Faurecia announced it will become a “strategic shareholder” of Amminex A/S by taking a 21.2% stake, a transaction valued at DKK 146.4 million (EUR 19.6 million) in cash. Amminex is a Denmark-based developer of ammonia storage and delivery system (ASDS) technology—sometimes referred to as “solid SCR”. The solid SCR technology uses solid ammonia precursors, rather than liquid urea solutions, for selective catalytic reduction of NOx.
Faurecia expects that the Amminex ASDS technology “will offer significant advantages to OEMs when meeting Euro 6 and future Euro 7 emissions regulations for diesel NOx reduction.” Faurecia has also concluded a technological cooperation agreement with Amminex to develop and commercialize the technology for diesel engines worldwide. Pre-development activities have already started with several leading carmakers, said Faurecia.
The metal ammine-based NH3 delivery system by Amminex involves storage of non-pressurized ammonia in the form of metal chloride ammines, such as strontium chloride ammine, Sr(NH3)Cl2. On-vehicle, gaseous ammonia is released through thermal decomposition of the ammine at temperatures on the order of 80°C. While the metal chloride amine containers must be periodically replenished—just like liquid urea—the Amminex technology has the potential to store more ammonia per unit of volume and require replenishment less frequently.
The technology has also been studied by Navistar, who considers adopting SCR aftertreatment in conjunction with Amminex ammonia storage on their heavy-duty truck engines. Navistar signed a development agreement and took approximately a 20% stake in Amminex in December 2009.
Source: Faurecia