Water/Air Intercooler

[MP3-Owner]

Oh, ok. Yeah spraying mist on the outside of the IC is also a good way to get a few more horses. But, you cant use those in any type of road race like an auto x. You will get water on the course. But the NX N-tercooler doesn't get anything wet, it just sprays CO2 or N2O on the intercooler which is better than water.

Can you use CO2 with the NX N-tercooler kit? I know CO2 gets really cold when released into the atmosphere. It actually creates ice around the vavle if you let it go long enough. I can just imagine the "kick" it would give you when the CO2 hit the intercooler.
But then again CO2 is very dangerous to carry around if you don't have a proper carrier. We use CO2 where I work and when you first start they show you this video of a van that has a CO2 tank in the back and then they somehow explode the tank and it just rips the van apart.

 

[big_ben]

Yeah, it says on the instructions that you can use N2O or CO2. I'm pretty sure CO2 would be cheaper than the N2O. I'm not sure which one is colder when decompressed though.

 

[enry]

Yeah, it says on the instructions that you can use N2O or CO2. I'm pretty sure CO2 would be cheaper than the N2O. I'm not sure which one is colder when decompressed though.

I think you meant LN2 vs CO2.
That is a good question.

Let's check it out.

The heat of vaporization in cal/gm of N2 is 47. Is boiling temperature at 1.0 atm is 77.4 degrees kelvin

CO2 is different. CO2 cannot exist as a liquid out in the open, only as a solid or liquid. The heat of sublimation of CO2 at 1.0 atm is 137 cal/gm. Its sublimation temperature is 194.7 deg K.

So from the above, CO2(s) -> CO2(g) is "better", but my guess is that it is also popular because it will provide you cooling, albeit for a limited time, with no need for tanks, valves, evaporators, compressors, etc...

 

[iluvmacs]

Good post. I would just like to add that unless you have a mid or rear engine car, it's much easier to run Air to Air. Water cooling offers much higher cooling capacity and less intake pressure drop, at the expense of a much larger radiator (just for the water, not the engine coolant), and pumping losses.

Cars that run Water/Air coolers are Lotus (mid engine), some porsche (rear engine), racing honda NSX (mid engine), and I think peugot did some water cooling too.

 

[orangezoom]

Air/Liquid intercoolers operate by pumping cooled water through the cores either from a front-mounted radiator ot heat exchanger or chilled water produced by circulating the liquid through a container filled with ice, as used in drag racing. Depending on the engine size and heat load, we recommend a container that will hold a minimum of 12 pounds of ice. If a front radiator is used, this should be as a large as possible since the temperature of the liquid entering the intercooler determines the cooling effectiveness. We recommend a radiator as used on small automobiles with a minimum surface area of at least 260 sq. inches. Radiator technology is perferable rather than oil cooler technology as these are specifically designed to cool water/glycol. When these intercoolers are used with chilled water, it is possible, in some cases, to get charge temperatures below ambient temperature, therefore remarkable increases in air density and power are possible

That is a direct quote from the web site of spearco

 

[orangezoom]

Air to Liquid intercoolers offer compactness without sacrificing performance. These units use an external water pump that circulates water through a separate heat exchanger and a separate reservoir. In street applications, air to liquid intercoolers prevent heat soak to the core during stop and go driving by circulating water through the core when the vehicle is not in motion. In race applications where ice water is utilized, air to liquid offers performance beyond air to air units.

Another direct quote

 

[mp5jeff]

if im not mistaken, a air/liquid IC can also acheive almost 99 percent efficiency?

 

[orangezoom]

I am starting my air to liquid this week(thumb)

 

[mp5jeff]

cool.

 

[iluvmacs]

I am starting my air to liquid this week(thumb)

Where are you getting the heat exchanger for the intake air, and the radiator for the coolant?

 

[Mental Addiction]

Just for referrance, the Lightnings, Harley Trucks,etc run an Eaton Blower with a water/air intercooler under the blower.It's routed to a fin/tube exchanger upfront to cool the water.

 

[iluvmacs]

That's cool. So do you think a heat exchanger for a 5+ liter engine running 3-5 psi boost would be sufficient for a 2 liter engine running 7-20 psi boost?

Wonder if any of those trucks have been junked yet...

 

[Mental Addiction]

That's cool. So do you think a heat exchanger for a 5+ liter engine running 3-5 psi boost would be sufficient for a 2 liter engine running 7-20 psi boost?

Wonder if any of those trucks have been junked yet...

The heat exchangers are fin/tube.So trans cooler, oil cooler or ac condensor would work fine.

 

[deckedoutmp5]

to use a water to air setup you have to use a "stand alone water system" to have good results. on a pc, which i run water cooled also the radiator and pumps are seperate. its almost the same scale as a pc with a car compared to type and temp on a scale. you cant just pop on a water to air and tap the feed water line and then tap it back. that is why you do not want to run water lines with your turbo, it will make your car run hotter. only use oil and a good cooler. therefore, if you use water to air, which is what i will be doing, you have to get a seperate pump and cooler. they work great. LOTS of cars out there i have seen use water to air on daily drivers. they are great for a sleeper too. sometimes we dont have room for a big ic, like us protege guys without cutting your front bumper rail off. they are great. most of the time you dont see them because no one has the money to do it "right", and hell even the IC themselves are bling bling expensive. its about a grand to 1500 bucks to do it right.

 

[atila]

I going to use an water/air intercooler for this summer, the car should be finish in about 2 weeks cause the track reopen. I'm using the stock ac rad for water and a tank in the left fender with a pwr performance intercooler. The only things that are left to do is to place the tank and put the hoses in place and wire the pump, should be done this weekend i hope