From: emory!eng.umd.edu!gregaw (Greg A. Westphal)
X-Source: The Hotrod Mailing list
Date: Feb 1994
Subject: Nitrous Oxide What does it do?
X-Sequence: 7625

Joe, read the February 1994 issue of Hot Rod Magazine.  They explain in
a fair amount of detail how it works.  You are right about how it
injects oxygen into the intake, however, I assume that bottled N2O is a
lot cheaper than pure oxygen.  I remember from Chemistry that the
atmosphere is nearly 80% nitrogen, so separating the oxygen would be
quite difficult.  Anyway, the fore-mentioned magazine has covered nearly
every aspect of engines and cars in its series "How Does It Work?".
Enjoy!

                                                Greg A. Westphal

                                                gregaw@eng.umd.edu

[You CANNOT use pure oxygen or even much oxygen erichment in an engine
unless you are fond of spectacular explosions.  Oxygen accelerates the
combustion far too rapidly to be useful in an engine.  Ask me how I
know, I dare you :-) The important thing to understand about nitrous is
that it releases oxygen in a controlled manner during combustion.  The
disassociation of the N2O molecule absorbs energy and the nitrogen
absorbs additional energy.  All these moderate the effect of the oxygen
release.  JGD]

From: emory!knuth.mtsu.edu!lusky (Jonathan R. Lusky)
X-Source: The Hotrod Mailing list
Date: Feb 1994
Subject: Re: Nitrous Oxide What does it do?
X-Sequence: 7636

> unless you are fond of spectacular explosions.  Oxygen accelerates the
> combustion far too rapidly to be useful in an engine.  Ask me how I
> know, I dare you :-) The important thing to understand about nitrous is
> that it releases oxygen in a controlled manner during combustion.  The
> disassociation of the N2O molecule absorbs energy and the nitrogen
> absorbs additional energy.  All these moderate the effect of the oxygen
> release.  JGD]


Ok, how do you know?  Ever experimented with it in one of them
slowburnin wankels?

--
Jonathan R. Lusky  --  lusky@knuth.mtsu.edu
 "Turbos are nice but I'd rather be blown!"
   89 Jeep Wrangler - 258 / pile of junk!
       80 Toyota Celica - 20R / 5spd

[Dare I say it?  The venerable B&S lawnmower engine.  One of several
times I literally blew the head off the block.  JGD]