Nitrogen for Tires [Merged]

[dr. d]

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

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.

-

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.

[bloowolf]

Re: Niky's post, I did experience some of the pressure loss at first when the new tires were first filled up with N2. I had to go back every few days to refill. I surmised that residual air was still in the tires & the O2 was just leaking out, hence the pressure loss. After a few refills, the pressure stabilized so I just refill every rotation cycle.

[Jiggs]

Also if not all most of the Nitrogen filling station are equipped with a Nitrogen.Generator (done by simply filtering air to membranes letting out the smaller molecules and living behind the larger molecules N2). This process best N2 product quality still have 3-5% O2 content on it. So achieving a full N2 on your tires is really not feasible unless you get your source from a UHP Nitrogen bottles from CIGI, Air Liquide, etc. Ohh bdway the primary reason aside sa mentioned above
Post of why aircraft is using N2 on tires is due to expansion having Ordinary compressed air would blow off the tires when the plane reaches cruising altitudes. Ambient Pressures at that altitudes would over pressurized the tires😊

[niky]

Also if not all most of the Nitrogen filling station are equipped with a Nitrogen.Generator (done by simply filtering air to membranes letting out the smaller molecules and living behind the larger molecules N2). This process best N2 product quality still have 3-5% O2 content on it. So achieving a full N2 on your tires is really not feasible unless you get your source from a UHP Nitrogen bottles from CIGI, Air Liquide, etc. Ohh bdway the primary reason aside sa mentioned above
Post of why aircraft is using N2 on tires is due to expansion having Ordinary compressed air would blow off the tires when the plane reaches cruising altitudes. Ambient Pressures at that altitudes would over pressurized the tires😊

More to the point, since the rubber is porous, it is impossible to keep pure nitrogen in the tires. As per the NHTSA paper, your tires, even when filled with 99% nitro, will eventually end up with 92-95% nitro. And those were truck tires they were working with, so the partial pressure of oxygen was low (truck tires were inflated to 60 psi). At 30 psi, that would be closer to 90% flat.

I can do that by simply filling my tires to 45 psi and continuously topping off until most of the oxygen bleeds off.

[bloowolf]

I stand corrected. A few weeks ago, one of my nitro filled tires suffered a puncture. I brought it to the closest vulcanizing shop in my place & they removed the tire & patched it up. They filled it after with compressed air. Now, if the claims of nitrogen were true, the air filled tires would have a more inconsistent pressure. So, I checked the pressure to make sure they are even & recorded the pressure in the morning & when I get home in the afternoon. My route is usually from Bacoor to Carmona & back or to Malvar or Naik & back. Verdict? There is no discernible difference in the cold/hot tire pressure between the nitro equipped tires & compressed air tires.

[dr. d]

I stand corrected. A few weeks ago, one of my nitro filled tires suffered a puncture. I brought it to the closest vulcanizing shop in my place & they removed the tire & patched it up. They filled it after with compressed air. Now, if the claims of nitrogen were true, the air filled tires would have a more inconsistent pressure. So, I checked the pressure to make sure they are even & recorded the pressure in the morning & when I get home in the afternoon. My route is usually from Bacoor to Carmona & back or to Malvar or Naik & back. Verdict? There is no discernible difference in the cold/hot tire pressure between the nitro equipped tires & compressed air tires.

!
.........

[lowslowbenz]

Top 1 reasons not to put nitrogen in your tyres - YouTube

Nitrogen scam.

[dr. d]

Top 1� reasons not to put nitrogen in your tyres - YouTube

Nitrogen scam.

anything to brag that "my car is better than yours"...
as an internet expert said, "nitrogen may be advantageous for everyday drivers, but only if it were given away for free".
about the only people i imagine, who would conceivably benefit from nitrogen in tires, would be formula racers... because nitrogen does not support fire !
heh heh.

[Stigg ma]

anything to brag that "my car is better than yours"...
as an internet expert said, "nitrogen may be advantageous for everyday drivers, but only if it were given away for free".
about the only people i imagine, who would conceivably benefit from nitrogen in tires, would be formula racers... because nitrogen does not support fire !
heh heh.

for me, regular air with my tire inflator at home does the trick, i get to check my tires with a minimum of twice a week or before a long drive on its condition (for tire puncture because of road debris like wood nails and the likes and uneven wear)

[ice15]

Nitrogen vs. Air in Tire: Is Nitrogen Better Than Air in Tires? | RX Mechanic

[dr. d]

someone already said it here.

just keep using ordinary air to inflate your tyres.
if it is true that oxygen (21% of air) seeps thru rubber faster than nitrogen (78% of air),
over a period of time, your nitrogen level inside the tyre gets higher, as the oxygen seeps out faster than nitrogen.
eventually, after several tyre re-inflations, you will have a very high concentration of nitrogen in your tyres.