DEF Date Codes and API Certification

Got a Clean Diesel powered RV made after 2011 that uses DEF???  Here is some information that you may find useful.

A date code, or expiration date can be found on just about any package of DEF. This is called out in the specification for DEF: ISO 22241.

Most DEF manufacturers are certified by the API. The API is the American Petroleum Institute and it has a voluntary certification program for DEF. The API offers (sells) manufacturers rights the API mark. Your owner's manual probably requires you to use DEF that is per the ISO 22241 specification, and that has this API marking.

Here is the secret to reading the expiration date on BlueDEF manufactured by Old World Industries LLC and sold under the PEAK Brand. Other manufacturers differ. I'm working on a complete library of date codes.

This BlueDEF information is from an email reply from PEAK Technical Services dated July 1, 2013 in response to my request for how to read the date code (after having a big leak problem with some old jugs I purchased at an auto parts store).

"The most important part of the batch code is the third through seventh numbers. There are always going to be two letters or numbers at the beginning of the code, which is the blending facility code, The third and fourth number of the code is the year +1. The fifth, sixth and seventh numbers of the code are the days left in the year, or reverse Julian date. So if the code says 257 for example, that would mean it was made on the 108th day of the year.. April 18th."


The date code on the BlueDEF box in my picture is

GA153590089

Lets break this down into 4 groups of numbers:

GA: The designator of the plant that manufactured the DEF
15: The year of manufacture plus 1, so this DEF was made in 2014
359: 365-359 = 6, so the 6th day of the year, or January 6th.
0089: The batch code.

So this box of DEF was made January 6th, 2014.

Specification life for DEF is 2 years at 75F or so. Stored properly, this DEF is good thru January 6th, 2016 (and probably longer).

Storage life is highly dependent on temperature. DEF stored at 85F only lasts 12 months. Storage above 95F (not unusual in an vehicle parked in the sun during the summer) is limited to 1 month or so. Reason: The urea in DEF decomposes and creates ammonia liquid and vapor in the jug, causing issues when you open it, and reducing the amount of urea in the DEF when it is used in the vehicle. Storage above 95F requires retest of the DEF prior to use (source: ISO 22241-3, most recent revision).

Simple huh? 

Tip #1: Don't buy old DEF jugs. When buying DEF in jugs, look at the code. In 2014, find a jug with 14 or 15 in the 3rd and 4th spaces and the highest three digit number you can find in the 5th, 6th, and 7th digits. Store it in a cool location out of the sunlight.

Tip#2: Buy DEF from stores that are likely move a lot on inventory, have controls on inventory age, and are air conditioned. Not that it is a guarantee, but big name outfits are likely a good bet.

Tip#3: DON'T buy jugs of DEF at a gas station that stores them outside, or have obvious signs of degradation like leaks, crystals on the box or jug, or are off color.

Tip#4: Keep your receipts for DEF in case there is an issue.

Five Star DEF's mission is provide owners with easy to understand information about Clean Diesels, especially Diesel Exhaust Fluid. We offer Innovative DEF Solutions to provide Clean Diesel owners an alternative to mass-market DEF products. Look us up on www.fivestardef.com.

Thanks,

Erich

fivestardef said:

Five Star DEF's mission is provide owners with easy to understand information about Clean Diesels, especially Diesel Exhaust Fluid.

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That statement is true advertising hype! If their mission was really to "provide owners with easy to understand information," then they would included the "made on date" with an actual date (01062014, 20140106 or even 01/06/2014) so that one would not have to remember and apply their algorithm which they created to decipher the date on which the batch was made. JMO

R

Let's not shoot the messenger   Erich didn't create the labeling but he is explaining it so we can read it.

Thanks for the info, Erich.  Can you tell us what impact we should expect if the DEF has deteriorated severely yet there is no visible evidence?  Other than poor environmental protection, what effect?

Hi RLSharp

I apologize for the confusion my post may have caused, you bring up a great point that I should clarify for you and others

We're NOT affiliated with PEAK, or Blue DEF. We don't sell liquid DEF.  We had a lot of questions about mass market DEF after buying our new truck and dealing with DEF, especially date codes.  That's why we started a small company that offers alternatives to current DEF. It's a small business we run out of a spare room in our home.  We also found it difficult to find information about DEF, especially for light truck and RVers, so we decided to share what we have learned.  Call it filling a need to do technical work that was caused by retiring at 55.

I completely agree with you that the PEAK expiration date marking is hard to read.  That is why we provided the decoding algorithm.  Just sharing what we have learned.

Advertising hype???  More likely that we're retired engineers and don't have any sales or marketing experience, or any employees. So we make mistakes...We are RV Forum supporters, and they reward us with a small banner ad. 

Again, we apologize for any misunderstanding.  Thanks for pointing out that we need to communicate clearly. We'll try to be clearer in future posts.

Erich

Molaker

Good question.  Longish answer, but that is my nature as an engineer.

Clean Diesel vehicles use closed loop control to manage the Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) system that is part of the after treatment system. In principle, it is like cruise control in your vehicle:  With cruise control, you set the desired speed, and the vehicle does all the work to maintain it: increase throttle setting, decrease throttle setting, etc. With clean diesel SCR, the control system is set to control the amount of oxides of Nitrogen: NOx in the exhaust. 

The system injects (doses) a very accurate amount of DEF into the exhaust upstream of the SCR catalyst many times per second just like a fuel injector.  The urea in the DEF is converted to ammonia by heat, and the ammonia then reacts with the catalyst to convert NOx to water, nitrogen, and CO2. The system also works with the EGR system to provide the best efficiency (lean burning) conditions in the engine to improve fuel economy.  There is a NOx sensor after the SCR module that measures NOx in the exhaust. If the NOx levels are too high, the pulse widths or frequency of the DEF doser are increased, adding more urea to the exhaust stream. It is important to not inject too much DEF in the exhaust, or ammonia will be present in the exhaust, not good. All these actions take place hundreds of time per minute.

So what are the implications of diluted, very old, or otherwise non-conforming DEF??

Well, in most cases you will simply use more of it, just like your cruise control applies throttle to climb a grade.  The required levels of NOx in the exhaust are maintained.  In cases where the SCR system cannot meet mandated levels of NOx in the exhaust, you'll get a message, and be required to fix the issue within a specified length of time, usually something around 200 miles (varies widely  by OEM, but all must comply with EPA2013 protocols). 

Addressing the issue means adding DEF if you ran out, or having the system repaired, perhaps by flushing the DEF system or replacing a bad sensor or plugged filter.  Most problems arise from users accidentally putting diesel in the DEF tank (please don't do this) or putting water in instead of DEF to save money. 

Worst case:  Using badly contaminated DEF or intentionally using the wrong fluid can destroy the SCR system on your vehicle.  Full replacement may be required.  Price varies, but can be over $5000.  Way over.

Normal case of getting bad DEF at the pump or from a bad jug: Flush DEF tank, replace filter, replace sensor: from $250 to over $1000.  Less if under warranty and it was a bad part or your vehicle just needs a "reflash" of the engine control computer to implement a fix in "firmware".  The EPA requires 2013 Clean Diesel engine manufacturers to provide up to 70,000 mi or more warranties on the emission control systems like SCR.  They are not required to cover negligence.  Refer to tip#4 from my original post.

Erich

Correction to tip#1, (illustrating how easy it is to make a mistake with this coding)

Tip #1: Don't buy old DEF jugs. When buying DEF in jugs, look at the code. In 2014, find a jug with 14 or 15 in the 3rd and 4th spaces and the highest LOWEST three digit number you can find in the 5th, 6th, and 7th digits. Store it in a cool location out of the sunlight.

Ned said:

Let's not shoot the messenger<$1alt="" title="" onresizestart="return false;" id="smiley__$2" style="padding: 0 3px 0 3px;" />  Erich didn't create the labeling but he is explaining it so we can read it.

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Ned and Erich,

I guess that I did not read Erich's message thoroughly enough. I read the paragraph, "This BlueDEF information is from an email reply from PEAK Technical Services dated July 1, 2013 in response to my request for how to read the date code" and then the final paragraph, after going through the algorithm, "Five Star DEF's mission is provide owners with easy to understand information about Clean Diesels, especially Diesel Exhaust Fluid. We offer Innovative DEF Solutions to provide Clean Diesel owners an alternative to mass-market DEF products. Look us up on www.fivestardef.com." and somehow associated the last paragraph with PEAK's email rather than realizing that it was Five Star DEF's mission statement.

Sorry about that Erick. I must read more carefully from now on. My comment was definitely not direct at you, but mistakenly at PEAK.

Richard

Ned,

Do you have any idea why your quote in my message above came out like it did?

R

Great information. However as a businessman  I am having trouble understanding your business model. Why would I or anyone else buy a product that is more than double the price of competitors and then have to hunt down distilled water to make the product whole? There are millions of trucks running down the road who buy their DEF at truck stops in either large jugs or right at the pumps. I don't see reports of any problems. Most large trucking companies have DEF in pallet size plastic containers and also don't have any problems. What part of your equation do I not understand? RV'rs all complain of the inconvenience of having to use DEF. Your concentrated product doubles the inconvenience.

RLSharp said:

Do you have any idea why your quote in my message above came out like it did?

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Known problem, no fix yet.

moisheh:

Good observation, and we appreciate the feedback.  You are correct about us being unable to compete on price at the pump or with some jugs.  And we don't want to.  Our prices are very competitive with other on-line sources for liquid DEF, especially our seven gallon kit including the added purchase of distilled water.  Some people use online sources for items they can find cheaper elsewhere for the convenience of having it delivered to their door. We'll see how this works out.

Since you asked, I'll be happy to answer your question about our business model. We offer DEF that can be safely stored in your vehicle for a nearly unlimited time.  Liquid DEF can't be. The owners manual for my F350 specifically advises not to, since it can leak and do significant damage to interior materials and metal structures (ph of 9.8 -10).  In addition, Liquid DEF stored in a vehicle during the summer months will vent ammonia, which some people (including me) are very sensitive to. We met most of the industry stakeholders at the DEF forum in Atlanta last year (can you believe over 350 attendees???) and got lots of positive comments on our innovations.  No sales though

We have found many locations that did not have DEF, especially in remote areas.  Our kit can be stowed anywhere in a vehicle or RV where it can fit, and serve as reserve DEF in case you can't find it at the pump or in a jug.  We have yet to find a small town in US that does not have distilled water.  Running out of DEF is not an option.

We've experienced the outcome of storing 2 jugs of DEF in our pickup camper, and it was not good. Both jugs leaked in the summer heat, and I had a full on asthma attack triggered by the ammonia that scared me.  After a thorough investigation, including the expenditure of a fair bit of money, we decided there might be a small market for what we've got to offer. 

We also offer what we think are greatly improved spouts for dispensing DEF into the vehicle, and a number of DEF Jug sizes specifically intended for filling at the pump and later reuse. This addresses a lot of RVer complaints about convenience at truck stops.

We've made our own DEF now for 6 months, and used nearly 20 gallons in our F350.  We use less because it is right at the 32.5% urea concentration mark.  It may surprise you, but we make DEF for a lot less than 2$/gallon, and it is as good or better than what is available in the market as our independent lab testing confirms.  Market price for liquid DEF is between 2.90 and 6.50/gallon depending on where/how it is purchased. The most expensive part of out kits are the jugs, packaging, and the shipping. Automotive grade urea is cheap.  That 2.90 gallon at the pump has less than $.50 of urea in it (3 lb.), and maybe $.03 of pure water (three quarts).

Then there is the environmental impact of DEF in disposable jugs.  We think Soda Stream has a great sustainable approach, and have used it since it was first introduced.  It also appears to be inconvenient, and there is unlimited supply of liquid soft drinks nearly every where.  Granted, it works on tap water, but the principle is similar.  The jug for our product is intended to be reused often, with either refill kits of urea, or by refilling at the pump.

As a businessman, consider this:  Before 2006, virtually no DEF was sold in the US. Last year, over 250 million gallons were sold.  The projection for 2017 is 800 million gallons.  That's a steep growth curve, and the item is legally required for all new diesel powered vehicles.

Thanks for listening,

Erich

I just checked their site and it would cost me $31.18 for the powder (which includes shipping to NH) then another $1.00 or so for a gallon of distilled water. Then I would have to mix it to end up with 1.36 gallons of DEF. I just came back from WalMart a few minutes ago, and I purchased 2 1/2 Gallons of DEF, no mess, no mixing and comes with a easy pour spout which is a plus for me because my fill opening is right up against the firewall. Here in NH with no tax, it cost me $11.97. Do you get the point? It's a no brainer. I just drove back from FL stopping at truck stops for fuel. Don't quote me but I believe DEF at the pump was selling for $2.89 a gallon.

Rene T is correct.  Of course our product is not intended to compete with Walmart, and I appreciate her providing facts and data. Yes, it is a no brainer for her and her circumstances, and I agree with her conclusion.  Since she is a 2011 Duramax owner, she gets to fill the DEF tank under the hood, unlike our Ford which is right next to the diesel fill neck. 

Rene:  I'd like to offer you one of our spouts FREE to compare with the one that comes with the Blue DEF jug, especially on your Chev.  Details via PM if you are interested.

Erich

Erich. Thanks for your offer but no thanks. Oh by the way, I'm a he and not a she. I get that all the time.

I just figured that out.  Should have looked at your profile before I posted.  My apologies!

Erich