Is nitrous explosive?

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Mon 9 Oct 2006 09:04
Is nitrous explosive? - Carl2
I just read an article on a yamaha rd125LC. The owner says that he had fitted nitrous. I notice that the bike is fitted with carb induction and a twostroke engine so this goes against my understanding of nitrous. I should have thought that nitrous fed into the air box as stated would just give u a weak mixture. I did not think nitrous was explosive but simply allowed more oxygen to enter the bore and it helped cool the air after a turbo had heated it up. If the article was not in a previously considered credible magazine I would have dismissed it .
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Mon 9 Oct 2006 09:18
Is nitrous explosive? - Andy P
Nitrous oxide isn't flammable or toic, but at 296°C it breaks down into nitrogen and oxygen. Since it contains a higher proportion of oxygen than normal air (36% compared to 20%) and is more dense (50% denser than air), a cubic foot of nitrous oxide contains 2.3 time the amount of oxygen that air does.

When used in a combustion engine, it has the same effect as a turbocharger or supercharger, generating more power. A small dose can generate a 25-35% increase. However, it's not as straightforward as that. Timing needs to be retarded. If you feed nitrous to the engine without enough extra fuel, the lean air/nitrous to fuel mixture will make the detonation problem even worse. Combustion temperatures will skyrocket and catistropic failure is certain to occur. If the proportion is such that too much fuel is delivered, the power advantage degrades rapidly.

So, in the case you describe, it probably doesn't work.
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