Right on! I can relate to that. GOAT HEAD stickers here so the slime and KEVLAR!
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Sonny, if nitrogen molecules are larger than the ~20% of air that is NOT nitrogen, then all the non-nitrogen would leak out and what would be left is... nitrogen!
Nitrogen atoms are about 0.15nm across, oxygen a hair smaller at 0.14nm, but remember that molecules of each have two atoms...
"As a quick comparison, we can use the covalent radius defined as 1/2 the distance between to identical covalently bonding nuclei. This is measured in picometers (1 pm= 1x 10-12 m). Nitrogen's covalent radius is 75pm so the length of a nitrogen (N2) molecule ought to be 4 X 75pm or 300 pm. A molecule of oxygen (O2) ought to be just a shade smaller 4 X 73pm or 292pm. So an oxygen molecule is a little less than 3% smaller than a nitrogen molecule." -- http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_does_t...that_of_oxygen
If you really want your brain to hurt, however, read http://www.getnitrogen.org/pdf/graham.pdf
Notice that it doesn't say just how fast the oxygen actually leaks out of a tire. Days, weeks, months, years?
I know hydrogen leaks out of almost anything, but I have yet to have that problem with regular air in tires, unless there is something poking a hole in one of them. It's not like we don't check the air in them on occasion, is it? I have never gone out to check on them and suddently noticed each one had a 20% drop in pressure.
The argument for nitrogen lies pretty much on the size of the molecules. So if you used carbon dioxide, which is considerably larger than nitrogen and absurdly easy to get (hey--carbon sequestration!!), or something like isobutane (although it is sort of flammable) that has several more atoms in it... How about sulfur hexafluoride?
You can rattle your sabers all you want.
Nitrogen in tires is right now. Green valve caps is the indicator to tire men that nitrogen has been placed in a tire.
And nobody but nobody would put slime in any tire seeing high speeds, throws it WAY out of balance.
But hey, you can put crap in your tires for all I care. I save the manure tea for the garden, myself. Heavy equipment often has water filled to a great percentage, for tractive weight.
I still would not, nor advise that, nitrogen be used in inflatables. :p
There is plenty of information about it around. Assuming you are intelligent enough to use a web link. :confused:
I know how challenged Coloradans are, so I'll try and edgemacate you. ;)
Sonny, did you also see a vacuum pump? Did they vacuum out all the ambient oxygen and other assorted foul gases before they inflated the tires with N2?
Did the N2 concentrator have a dyer filter to take out the water vapor?
Just curious.
Jim
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/...instead-of-air
And heavy equipment usually has calcium filled tires or foam filled. More stability along with weight. I've seen very little water being used (if any) in heavy equipment.
Go back to page 2, Mojo.
See "Here's More" in my post.
And do try and keep up. ;)
Calcium chloride, or something like that, added to water pumped into a 966 Cat loader tires in Wyoming when I was up there in the mid-1970's thru 1982. (Isn't that just salt, really?) Anyway, he pumped it out of 55 gallon drums, and had a water hose as well. It was interesting to watch and talk to him briefly.
All for traction weight for the big loader that moved the uranium ore into the grizzly for the mills crusher.
I believe the guy said it was so the water wouldn't freeze in the sub-zero winters, and it added more weight than the water alone. I don't know if it really didn't freeze, but the diesel gelled in the -60 degrees Fahrenheit winter of '78-79. Shut down production for many days.
That winter also killed 70% of the wildlife in Wyoming.
Like I said, put any crap you want in your tires, or your inflatables.
I have nitrogen in mine. And I'm satisfied they do run cooler than any of the sets of tires before them. And it was free to me. Mounting, balancing, and the Nitrogen filling. :cool:
Running acrossed the desert pulling my boat with the wife and Grand kids on board, It's important to me that I do what I can to make every trip safe.
BTW, I bet neither you, nor DG, knows that sulfur hexafluoride is an insulating gas, SF6, used in high voltage electrical equipment. Heavier than air. And highly controlled (at least, we have to keep close track of our supplies, records, annual cylinder weighting, etc.). :shock: :idea: :rolleyes:
But that's OK, I'll let you bury yourselves. ;)
I just use air with a 12 volt blower for my inflatables. Blows them up, and it vacuums them back down when packing up. So Easy!
Now, stop licking your paws and sniffing DG's bottom.
Thanks for the link Mojo. Interesting.
Uhh, nope. How would you vacuum down a tire that is loose on a rim? :confused: You have to pressurize it to seat it first. ;)
The N2 station is a fully self contained unit. A plant that compresses the N2 from the air. That much I do know from my limited research (curiousity about it).
They are really cool little plants that sit there and extract the N2 from the air and compress it. At least that is what Costco has.
They sure aren't cheap either! 5-6K $ and up. :shock:
And yes, the one's I have seen do in fact have layers of filtering and drying to remove they other compressed gasses from the product.
But then, I have those steps (filtering and drying) in my own wood shop compressor so I don't get junk in my air tools or sprayer supply air systems.
Here's some advantages to N2, if you're interested.
I do believe, from my limited experiance so far, that nitrogen is a good thing to have in your tires. I wouldn't pay extra for it, but it is good stuff.
Not necessary or worth putting in your inflatables, IMHO.
Don't get your panties in a bunch sport. If you mean calcium choloride, say it. It's just not water.
And sorry to burst you bubble, I know about sulfur hexafluoride (SF6). Also used in window insulation among other things.
So what does that have to do with this post Mr. Science?
And you can come off your pedestal since most of us just can't see worshiping you.;)