Superior activity and selectivity of a Cu ion-exchanged SSZ-13 zeolite in the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NOx with NH3 were observed, in comparison with Cu-beta and Cu-ZSM-5 zeolites. Cu-SSZ-13 was not only more active in the NOx SCR reaction over the entire temperature range studied (up to 550 degrees C), but also more selective toward nitrogen formation, resulting in significantly lower amounts of NOx by-products (i.e., NO2 and N2O) than the other two zeolites. In addition, Cu-SSZ-13 demonstrated the highest activity and N-2 formation selectivity in the oxidation of NH3. The results of this study strongly suggest that Cu-SSZ-13 is a promising candidate as a catalyst for NOx SCR with great potential in after-treatment systems for either mobile or stationary sources. (C) 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.