Member feedback: Nitrous Intercooler
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Joined: Feb 2001
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From: Montreal, PQ
Originally posted by saxyman990
How does it not come close to cooling enough??? The boiling point of CO2 is -109 degrees F, wheras the boiling point of N2O is somewhere around -126 degrees. When you are talking that kind of extreme negative temperatures, it is plenty cold enough.
Read my post. My setup (including bottle, solenoid, as well as my first fill-up) was less than $100. And that price actually includes a lot of Asthetic-type work. It's all about shopping around.
CO2 can be refilled at any paintball store. Also, most sports equipment stores can refill CO2 bottles (sports authority, Gart sports, Dicks sporting goods, etc). Also much cheaper than nitrous. Only a few bucks will fill an entire bottle. (my bottle refils are usually in the 5-8 dollar range).
Just my $0.02. I'm not saying this is the best way to do it, I'm just giving my point of view.
How does it not come close to cooling enough??? The boiling point of CO2 is -109 degrees F, wheras the boiling point of N2O is somewhere around -126 degrees. When you are talking that kind of extreme negative temperatures, it is plenty cold enough.
Read my post. My setup (including bottle, solenoid, as well as my first fill-up) was less than $100. And that price actually includes a lot of Asthetic-type work. It's all about shopping around.
CO2 can be refilled at any paintball store. Also, most sports equipment stores can refill CO2 bottles (sports authority, Gart sports, Dicks sporting goods, etc). Also much cheaper than nitrous. Only a few bucks will fill an entire bottle. (my bottle refils are usually in the 5-8 dollar range).
Just my $0.02. I'm not saying this is the best way to do it, I'm just giving my point of view.
The KIC kit can use both c02 and n20, only difference is the valve on the tank.
as far as using nitrous oxide (n2o) versus carbon dioxide (co2) while co2 has slightly better latent heat vaporization than n2o which means it will absorb more energy (heat), but n20 has lower temperatore at vaporization meaning it can achieve lower temps, it also has greater heat capacity which affects the acutal application.
co2 also has a lower critical temperature, these things and the greater availability of nitrous in my locale is why I use it. however, for others it may be different, which is why it is avaliable in both.
In the end, they are both very similar on paper, why I saw greater results with nitrous could be from other reasons such as bottle pressure, as the pressur in the bottle decreases the cooling or amount of energy it absorbs is greater upon vaporization.
as Saxyman 990 said I think the point here is that these things do work quite well. also, water won't even come close to the same cooling, we are talking about being able ot cool at -600F versus unvapoured water. Yes water does have the greatest heat capacity, however it does not vaporize at ambiant temps like co2 or n2o so it cooling effect as compared to nitrous or carbon dioxide is useless. It is the phase change that produces the cooling. If you could achive that with water it woudl be great, but there is no feasbile way to do it.
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Joined: Jun 2002
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From: in a house in PA
The issue with no2 is its availability. I can't get it anywhere close to me... then again, I live bumblef*, PA.
Audi R8 LeMans Prototypes use to use sprayers on their intercoolers. This was also back in the days (uhh 4 years ago) and I don't think they were looking for big cooling and weight was too much of an issue... water/compressed gas ??
Maybe better designed intercoolers?
Audi R8 LeMans Prototypes use to use sprayers on their intercoolers. This was also back in the days (uhh 4 years ago) and I don't think they were looking for big cooling and weight was too much of an issue... water/compressed gas ??
Maybe better designed intercoolers?
