WEl all know on FI an intercooler can add quite a bit of HP. And saw a few 300ZX TT's today on my way down and back from redondo and it got me thinking.

Would a intercooler give any benefits on a NA applicaton?
I know it seems stupid but im curious to find out.

Were always saying heatsoak is the enemy well colder air would help would it not?
Along with The thermal gaskets .

 

One problem is that an intercooler is a lot of drag on the intake system, so without something to push the air through the amount of air getting to the engine is going to be a lot less. It would be similar to having a 30ft long intake tube instead of the 3ft long you have now.

If you're not pressurizing the air into the intercooler, then it's really nothing but a air-to-air heat exchanger. Since you're running outside air through an intercooler that has outside air running across it, you're not really cooling it.

For it to do any good, you must be compressing and heating the air going into the intercooler. The ambient air cools the heated air and make it denser. That's where the advantage comes from.

What you could do is using something to cool the air like NOX or a CO2 spray bar. Those cold gases would lower the intake temperature some.

 

Makes sense...

intercoolers are cooling the heated air which has been compressed, and being forced into the engine.

but I have an idea!!!
will repost later with my idea!...

 

Anyone have detailed specs, blueprints, ect ect to the Z intake from the filter box to the TB?

 

If you're thinking about an electrical inline axial fan - it's already been done.

 

not that

 

my idea...

new intake tube with a condensing coil which you can run Liquid CO2 or similar through to supercool the intake air.

Comments?

 

that actually sounds like a (GOOD) idea. Wonder how much it would cost? Nice, thats what you go to school for! way to go the7ferret.

 

haha im going to school for a business degree...

I just at one point wanted to be an architect and took architecture classes so I have access to some really nice software and how to use it.

Anyone good at physics and knows how liquified gas reacts to certain things gimmie a pm or something...

 

I'm a noob at cold air intake... but isn't anything that is put in the way of the air going into the engine a bad thing? Isn't that why most people get the K&N filters instead of sticking with the stock? Because the K&N filters has more pores so more air can flow smoothly?


If you put that coil with liquid CO2, that is a very big obstruction relative to how the cold air intake works... maybe find a way to cool part of the walls.

Just my two cents.

 

design in progress... I realize that however cooling the sides down wouldn't affect the temp enough..

 

While in theory it a good idea, my immediate concern would be having it freeze up. Unless you're in a low humidity area, I would have to think ice buildup would be a big problem.

What happens when ice forms then breaks off and gets sucked into the engine. Even if ice doesn't make it to the engine, water probably would. What you're talking about is an air-conditioner - ever notice the amount of water that drips under your car from the A/C?

 

An intresting idea, but i think the effect would be quite low except for starts from a standstill as there is generally a frequent fast airflow where i guess the air must be travelling at like 40mp/h(?) or more in through the intake when you are accelerating, this means that the air will only be subjected to the cooler elements for an extremly short time period...

I think if this is to work you need to have something that looks abit similar to a normal radiator with very thinn highly conducting plates with a very large "contact" area while adding as little resistance to the airflow as possible.

With some smart ingeneering i think this will work for sure, the question is just what the diff of energy for cooling the air vs energy gained is. And from a longer perspective what the manufacturing costs would be.

Also Daves points needs to be taken into account, just look at the water from the A/C, or the ice in your fridge... Speaking of A/C... I wonder how much power would be gained by directing the A/C directly into the intake? (It uses ~10hp, doubtfull it it would give more output then that, but it might!)

/Roger

 

Yes, now simply use N2O instead of CO2 and introduce a small leak into the intake. NOW you have more power.
The intercooled idea is not going to work, IMHO. Turbos heat the air in the process of compressing it; thus the need for heat exchangers. Using it on N/A would be a waste since even at maximum interooling effectiveness, you will get ambient air temp which could be achieved with a cold air intake without as much drag.
The CO2 system will not really be very effective without a much more effective heat exchanging system. This will also introduce the drag back into the equation and thus probably negate the effects. I would think an ram air system would be more effective combined with cooling vents on the rest of the hood to get some of the engine bay heat out.

 

There's a CO2 company that makes an insert that goes inline of your intake tube...like another air flow meter. CO2 is pumped around it (imagine an intake pipe with a smaller diameter pipe in the middle with a void between them) which cools the intake air. I think it would be useless in a FI application with intercoolers.

sean