dumb question: Why is N2O used instead of straight O2?

[OrganizedChaos]

from what i understand N2O is used because is contains a higher percentage of oxygen than whats in the atmosphere. So why can't ricers go to a welding supply store and get some high flow regulators and a decent sized bottle of O2? what am i missing here?

 

[Zim Hosein]

FIRE!

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

I believe (and I could be wrong) that the problem is one of detonation.

 

[jurzdevil]

whats sound better...

i have nitrous

or

i have oxygen


ricers go for flash.


and yes...oxygen goes boom

 

[glen]

I think the N20 cools the engine to some degree.

 

[Tom]

maybe the nos molecule gives up the oxygen easier than o2.

 

[flamingelephant]

Because if you ran the O2 at full blast into the cylinder (or however nitrous is put into the system) it would seriously explode! A ingition run with pure 02 would have significantly more explosive power than a car with nos, but, even an overbuilt engine couldn't take the force of the combusiton. Plus, if the tank or a line did leak, an explosion would kill everything nearby. If you have any doubts about this, look at some film of a simple propane torch burning with normal air and then one in 100% 02. Its like a dull flame vs a flame thower. If people started putting 02 in cars, people all over would start dying.

 

[spidey07]

<---thinks back 14 years to organic chemistry...

Hmmm...02 is not flammable. It doesn't go boom. It only aids in the combustion process but doesn't add any more fuel but it will make said fuel but quicker...catalyst like.

Nitrogen on the other hand will bond with just about anything (its like carbon) so the bonds in N20 have to be pretty strong, releasing those bonds via combusion and the uptake of oxygen should release a good amount of energy.

like I said...I'm reaching very deep into the drug infested years of college so I could be way off base.

 

[MournSanity]

You don't want that newly riced car to go up in a ball of flames now, do you?

 

[spidey07]

read quick physics primer on nitrous...

It is 33 percent by volume oxygen vs the normal 21 percent of normal air we breathe. More oxygen is good.
Second it is pressurized and cold meaning more mass of said gas, meaning more oxygen.

And as others have said - straight O2 would be bad. Uncontrollible, explosive combustion

 

[spidey07]

read quick physics primer on nitrous...

It is 33 percent by volume oxygen vs the normal 21 percent of normal air we breathe. More oxygen is good.
Second it is pressurized and cold meaning more mass of said gas, meaning more oxygen.

And as others have said - straight O2 would be bad. Uncontrollible, explosive combustion

 

[HappyPuppy]

By injecting O2 into the combustion chambers of your engine you would either blow the heads off the engine or melt the valves, neither of which is something you would want to deal with.

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: glen
I think the N20 cools the engine to some degree.

All stored liquids-under-pressure can do the same.

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: Dead Parrot Sketch
maybe the nos molecule gives up the oxygen easier than o2.

LOL

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: spidey07
<---thinks back 14 years to organic chemistry...

Hmmm...02 is not flammable. It doesn't go boom. It only aids in the combustion process but doesn't add any more fuel but it will make said fuel but quicker...catalyst like.

Nitrogen on the other hand will bond with just about anything (its like carbon) so the bonds in N20 have to be pretty strong, releasing those bonds via combusion and the uptake of oxygen should release a good amount of energy.

like I said...I'm reaching very deep into the drug infested years of college so I could be way off base.

O2 IS the VERY thing that lets combustion happen (although I think CO also supports combustion). It bonds with the gasoline molecules and breaks it up (at least that's what you end up with, a gasoline molecule that ends up as water and CO2 in complete combustion).

Nitrogen has no effect in combustion.

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: Howard

Originally posted by: Dead Parrot Sketch
maybe the nos molecule gives up the oxygen easier than o2.

LOL

Damn. Even my 3 brain cells remaining from chemistry laugh out loud at that one.

 

[flamingelephant]

Because if you ran the O2 at full blast into the cylinder (or however nitrous is put into the system) it would seriously explode! A ingition run with pure 02 would have significantly more explosive power than a car with nos, but, even an overbuilt engine couldn't take the force of the combusiton. Plus, if the tank or a line did leak, an explosion would kill everything nearby. If you have any doubts about this, look at some film of a simple propane torch burning with normal air and then one in 100% 02. Its like a dull flame vs a flame thower. If people started putting 02 in cars, people all over would start dying.

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: HappyPuppy
By injecting O2 into the combustion chambers of your engine you would either blow the heads off the engine or melt the valves, neither of which is something you would want to deal with.

No, man, you'll blow the welds on the intake!

 

[LordMorpheus]

Originally posted by: flamingelephant
Because if you ran the O2 at full blast into the cylinder (or however nitrous is put into the system) it would seriously explode! A ingition run with pure 02 would have significantly more explosive power than a car with nos, but, even an overbuilt engine couldn't take the force of the combusiton. Plus, if the tank or a line did leak, an explosion would kill everything nearby. If you have any doubts about this, look at some film of a simple propane torch burning with normal air and then one in 100% 02. Its like a dull flame vs a flame thower. If people started putting 02 in cars, people all over would start dying.

but we don't like ricers anyway.

kidding, kidding. Yah, O2 would be more dangerous . . . but you don't need to fill the cylinders with 100% O2, you could just force a little bit more in than the car would normally get from the atmosphere, right? so you could, theoretically, get the same effect of N2O (NOS is a BRAND, not a molecule) with oxygen, unless n2o cools your engine as someone already suggested, but a good watercooling solution (comeone! half of you already have them on your computers, and the P-47 ran a watercooler on its engine!) would balance that.

And what could be cheaper than oxygen? with a little work you could probably make pure oxygen yourself (easy! in your basement! cheap! called electrolosys or something:

take some water, add salt to make it a better conductor, take two airtight containers, put them in the water so that each container is full of water, then invert them and draw them out so most of them is above the surface of the water, but they will still be completely full of water. Now run a wire to each so that the un-insulated end is the in water that is contained in the container. Then apply a voltage accross the wires and wait. Before too long the containers will start to fill with air bubbles. One will full twice as fast as the other. The one with twice the gas is pure H2. The other one is pure O2.

chem lesson over)

and i'd imagine that would be a WHOLE lot easier than getting the money together to buy your special shiny 'NOS' brand gas.

With a compressor you could even bottle your own high-pressure oxygen in an easily reusable container. Or you could just get high on the pure oxygen.

 

[Tom]

Originally posted by: spidey07

Originally posted by: Howard

Originally posted by: Dead Parrot Sketch
maybe the nos molecule gives up the oxygen easier than o2.

LOL

Damn. Even my 3 brain cells remaining from chemistry laugh out loud at that one.

"A property of nitrous oxide is that at about 565 degrees F., it breaks down into nitrogen and oxygen. When it is introduced into the intake tract of an internal combustion engine, it is sucked into the combustion chamber and, on the compression stroke, when the charge air temperature reachs 565 deg., a very oxygen-rich mixture results."



source

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: Dead Parrot Sketch

Originally posted by: spidey07

Originally posted by: Howard

Originally posted by: Dead Parrot Sketch
maybe the nos molecule gives up the oxygen easier than o2.

LOL

Damn. Even my 3 brain cells remaining from chemistry laugh out loud at that one.

"A property of nitrous oxide is that at about 565 degrees F., it breaks down into nitrogen and oxygen. When it is introduced into the intake tract of an internal combustion engine, it is sucked into the combustion chamber and, on the compression stroke, when the charge air temperature reachs 565 deg., a very oxygen-rich mixture results."



source

Cool, thanks a bunch for the info. And that means N20 gives up more oxygen than O2? I'm think that 100 oxygen by volume would produce more oxygen than N20. That's just me though.

 

[Tom]

I didn't say N2O provides more oxygen tha O2. I also didn't claim any knowledge about chemistry. I was just speculating for the sake of discussion, fully expecting that someone more knowledgeable would point out why I was wrong if I was.

But I forgot that there would be more interest in ridicule than interest in discussion here in OT.

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: Dead Parrot Sketch
I didn't say N2O provides more oxygen tha O2. I also didn't claim any knowledge about chemistry. I was just speculating for the sake of discussion, fully expecting that someone more knowledgeable would point out why I was wrong if I was.

But I forgot that there would be more interest in ridicule than interest in discussion here in OT.

yep, its 12:30 eastern on a saturday night. I'm a little loopy. But it looks like we've learned why straight O2 is bad mojo.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

/counts the number of times "NOS" was said in the thread when referring to nitrous oxide
/counts out equal number of shotgun shells

Okay, one at a time. No need to push, there's plenty for all.

- M4H

 

[Kadarin]

One of the reasons why N2O is used is that when it's stored under pressure it becomes a liquid. When it undergoes a phase change from liquid to gas at the nozzle going into the engine, it does a tremendous job of cooling down the air/fuel intake charge (or just air on fuel-injected motors), which not only improves horsepower, it reduces risk of detonation. I do not think pure O2 would have this effect, and the detonation issues would probably be unworkable.