heata
Member
Can't say I've noticed a difference, but will keep an eye out and post what I see. Oh, and I've got a snorkle
Wouldn't the sprayed water heat up so fast it's ineffective? Intercooler would be the only way I'd think. Logically. Never noticed it so far but I have a snorkel.
Old.Tony said:It would heat up, and evaporate rather quickly. The change of state from liquid to gas as the fluid evaporates causes a drop in temperature on the surface the fluid was on. That's also how our skin works, and how refrigerators and air conditioners work too (although they use different liquids at different pressures to achieve a higher working efficiency).
It is possible - and I had discussed this very thing with a performance guy back when I owned a Jaguar XJS - to pass the incoming air through a refrigeration unit driven by the engine (you could pass the fuel through this as well, although that has less performance benefits). The cost is high, the things that can go wrong with it are disastrous, so it would have to be maintained fairly regularly.
Cooling down the air changes the volume that those air molecules occupy. So cooler air is denser - more molecules per cubic centimetre. This does two things that are beneficial to the engine.
1) More oxygen molecules available for the combustion process, allowing the fuel to combust completely. It's the whole reason for having a turbo charger, too - forcing the air in under pressure. If you partially combust 20ml of diesel, you get a certain amount of energy which equates to a certain force downwards on the piston. Completely combust it and you get more force = more power.
2) When combustion takes place, the cooler gases expand more than hotter gases, creating additional downward force on the piston. This effect isn't going to give a lot of difference, but it is there and if we had the time and the will, we could measure it.
So spraying the intercooler with a mist will have a benefit.
I was talking with a performance mechanic who told me that the first thing I should fit to my Navara is a misting system. They even have automatic ones, with large tanks that you fill. It's not just the evaporation that helps the transfer, either, he said - it's the fact that a wet surface will transfer heat better than a dry surface.
He added that, with the D40, this will assist the radiator, auto transmission oil cooler and the air conditioner as well, since the mist will make its way through to these.
I guess I'm going to do it.
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