Nitrogen for Tires [Merged]

[dr. d]

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i suppose that about wraps it up.. ?
is it advantageous? if there is threat of fire, yes. someone said that this is the reason nitrogen is used in serious racing..
is it worth the expense? only if it is free.

it's something like car air conditioning.. the advocates then, advertised that with air conditioning, your car will be more fuel-effective, because driver would be driving with the windows closed, reducing wind resistance..

...complicated reasoning, that needs to be analyzed carefully..

i have a question.. if it is true, that if the tire carcass does indeed let oxygen out and not nitrogen..
is it possible, that after several refills with ordinary air, the gas inside that tire will already be nitrogen-enriched, because the oxygen will have seeped out already..?
that means, after several re-fills with ordinary air, practically every tire out there will be nitrogen-enriched already...

placebo..? dunno..

[bloowolf]

Is nitrogen good for your car tires? The advertised benefits of nitrogen in your car's tires are - less likely to leak since nitrogen molecules are larger, it runs cooler and it eliminates moisture. Furthermore, since aircraft tires use nitrogen, then it must be good for our cars!

Did you know that air consist of 78% nitrogen, 21 % oxygen and 1% other gases? Thus, by filling up your tires with pure nitrogen, you avoid the bad effects of oxygen and the other gases. But is it really worth it?

Let's take a look -
Pressure loss - a study made by consumerreports.org did show that nitrogen did leak more slowly over a course of one year - 2.2 psi for nitrogen vs. 3.5 psi for air. But would a 1.3 psi make a substantial difference? Yes, if you don't check your tire pressure for years.

Runs cooler - Nitrogen is a gas and just like any other gas and will always be affected by ambient temperature. The thermal conductivity of nitrogen and oxygen are almost the same. The effect of a hot tire on these gases will be the same. Nitrogen can never be cooler than air in tires since the law of physics will still prevail.

Eliminates moisture - By eliminating moisture, you prevent corrosion which can damage your wheels or tires. However, nowadays most wheels are made of aluminum alloy and these are coated to prevent corrosion. The oxidation that moisture can cause to the tire carcass is very negligible. You'll likely replace the tire due to it being worn out or ply separation than due to tire rot.

Now, why do aircraft use nitrogen in their tires? Since nitrogen is an inert gas and therefore is not flammable. This means that in the event that an aircraft blows out a tire, the nitrogen gas can help put out any fire that may be caused by the hydraulics in the landing gear. For the average car, this is not necessary as the hydraulics nearest the tire is the brake system and these have been designed with our safety in mind.

If you replace the air in your tires with nitrogen, you'll have to inflate and deflate it several times to get the remaining air out. So, it's practically impossible to have 100% nitrogen in your tires.

So is it good? If it's free, yes. But if you're paying for it, you're better off inflating your tires with free air and checking the tire pressure on a regular basis. It's better to spend your money on a good tire pressure gauge.

Drive safely.

There is some truth to this in practice. When I first used nitrogen on brand new tires, I noticed that the tires were loosing pressure quite rapidly. I had to refill weekly (around every 5 days). After a few refills, pressure stabilized, so now, I only refill every 5k, when I have my wheels rotated, for free of course. I surmised that the smaller molecules were leaking out when being displaced by the nitro. So you don't have to deflate & inflate.

[bloowolf]

If you plan to go Nitrogen, never re-inflate it with ordinary air. The air will just seep out. Check tire pressure regularly. Also, will be practical to have the nitrogen source close by, in case refills have to be done.

[red_one]

If free, why not. If may bayad, nevermind.

I use regular air lang. I have my own portable tire inflator and digital tire air pressure gauge at home. Even with ordinary air, it takes few months before the tires lose air pressure and need to refill.

[bloowolf]

If free, why not. If may bayad, nevermind.

I use regular air lang. I have my own portable tire inflator and digital tire air pressure gauge at home. Even with ordinary air, it takes few months before the tires lose air pressure and need to refill.

Biggest disadvantage of nitrogen equipped is when your tires suffer a puncture. You have to spend again to have it re-inflated

[red_one]

^Correct. Kaya ordinary air lang gamit ko.

[kingp0dd]

Where in marikina

[oj88]

I always thought it was a scam. If you detest reading long scientific journals, watch this instead.

https://youtu.be/bCnWvMleVD0

[bloowolf]

For some reason, I don't take Aussies seriously. They say & do a lot of bullshit. I liked Tiff Needles segment better. In any case, just my opinion, my experience with nitro better than air. I refill every 5k whenever I have my tires rotated, as compared to every week with air.

[niky]

Fun fact: Since air is already 80% nitrogen, and nitrogen diffuses more slowly through porous rubber, AND the Law of Partial Pressures dictates that for the gases that CAN diffuse through the rubber, the partial pressure should be the same inside the tire as in the outside air...

What does this mean?

Fill your tire with 99% pure nitrogen and the oxygen from outside will permeate through the tire... leaving you with a 85-90% nitro-oxy mix if you don't regularly top off.

Fill your tire with regular air, and the oxygen leaks out over time. Keep refilling it and eventually, you will have 85% or greater nitrogen inside your tire.

Source:
http://www.nhtsa.gov/DOT/NHTSA/NRD/M...009/811094.pdf

Some further reading:

Barry's Tire Tech

And read post 110 here:

Nitrogen tires - Page 3 - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum - EcoModder.com

for some laughs... the guy kept his tires inflated to 42 psi for over a year, reinflating as oxygen filtered out. At the end of that time, apparently, most of the oxygen was gone and the air was mostly nitrogen. Not enough oxygen to feed a lighter flame. Not a precise test, but an "illuminating" one. And as time went on and oxygen filtered out, he had to add less and less air to the tire. My tires are the same. After a year of putting high pressures in, they barely lose any pressure over a month.

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This is not to say nitrogen doesn't help... but simply reinflating your tires regularly and keeping tire inflation pressures high will, eventually, result in tires that lose less pressure over time. All without having to pay extra for the nitrogen you're ALREADY getting from a regular air pump.