Massey Ferguson has revealed that its new 370hp MF8690 tractor, due to be launched at the French Innovagri show in September, will be the first in the agricultural industry to use truck-style technology to cut exhaust emissions and fuel consumption.

Called Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR), the technology is already used by 250,000 trucks from makers like Daf, Mercedes, Volvo and Renault. In MF's case, it involves fitting a catalytic converter to the 8.4-litre four-valves-per-cyclinder Sisu Citius engine and then injecting urea into the exhaust gases to convert the nitrogen oxide (NOx) into harmless nitrogen and water.

The urea (in the form of a brand called AdBlue) is carried in a separate tank next to the existing diesel tank. It is injected into the exhaust downstream of the turbocharger via a Bosch control system and is consumed at a 3% rate, so a 1000-litre container is enough to treat 20,000 litres of diesel.

MF says the AdBlue solution will be widely available through MF dealers in a range of container sizes for convenient on-farm storage. And as more haulage vehicles use the system, the more readily available it should become at filling stations.

As well as giving MF a lead in meeting the tough new Tier 4 emissions regulations due to come into force in 2014, SCR also has another key benefit. The company says it means that the engine can run at the optimum air-to-fuel mix, resulting in an average fuel consumption cut of 5% compared with engines using conventional emissions-reducing technology.

"We are leading the field by being the first tractor manufacturer to use SCR technology to not only meet the next set of emissions legislation, due to come into place in 2011, but improve efficiency and provide clean air," says vice president of sales and marketing for MF, Declan Hayden.

"Using SCR is future-proof. It is predicted that by 2014 all engines of this class will require some form of SCR to comply with tier 4/Stage 4 emission requirements," he adds. MF is also the first tractor manufacturer to use SCR instead of EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) - the system currently used to meet Tier 3 (Stage 3) levels.

"Three years ago, EGR provided the immediate solution for emission requirements, but we have now taken a different path and the argument for SCR is compelling. It is clear that by 2014, SCR will be integral in most tractors," says Mr Hayden.

Emissions legislation in a nutshell

• Pre-1996: No legislation to control emissions
• 1996: Tier 1 - 30% reduction in NOx and 10% reduction in particulate matter (PM)
• 2002: Tier 2 - 50% NOx and 70% PM reduction
• 2006: Tier 3A - 70% NOx and 70% PM reduction
• 2011: Tier 3B - 85% NOx and 97% PM reduction
• 2014: Tier 4 - 97% NOx and 97% PM reduction