Intercooler, cooler...

On my "real" project car, im adding atop mount intercooler based on a 13b unit, yes i know a front mount is more efficient, but im going for an oem look (ala 924 carrera turbo.) since the top mount can become a heat sink for the exhaust rather quickly in this set up, i'm also adding an inter cooler sprayer, so i picked up an autospeed ic sprayer controller, than an evil thought occurred to me..

use the controller to run a co2 sprayer, instead of the traditional water/alcohol coolant... any reason why this might be a bad idea?? I figure i should be able to use the pump control line to activate a solenoid instead of a water pump. i could even run and emergency by pass to get double use out of the co2 sprayer as a fire control device..

here are the controller specs, the one thing im trying to figure out, is if it has an rs232 port 9im not sure, i haven't received the unit yet) if can also interface that with a laptop for programing and status reads..

http://www.autospeed.com/cms/article.html?&A=0578&P=1

doesnt seem like a bad idea or difficult install at the moment, but maybe i need to be slapped instead.. not sure..

opinions?

You used to be able to buy just such a system.

Big issue is they ran out of C02 and then there's the bulk of the body and having to refill it often.

I saw a dyno test where a guy installed CryO2 IC spray bar system and replaced the CO2 tank with N2O (considerably colder gas) and picked up 80 RWHP on the dyno. Seriously EIGHTY rwhp by simply using N2O.

CO2 should work fine as well, but damn... that was an amazing day. It must have made the efficiency of that intercooler jump dramatically.

just make sure the CO2 output isn't too close to your intake... if it is, run N2O

Yeah, run the nitrous to cool the I/C, duct the spent gas to the intake. Double your pleasure, double your risk.

and be sure to video tape it so we can all watch the inevitable boom of trying to reuse the Nitrous

So this is spraying the outside of the intercooler? A far more efficient way to cool the intake air would be water injection. There are some cheap (like $200)0 ways to do this. http://www.turbomirage.com/water.html

theres only about 15 degree difference between nos ejecting under pressure (around -125 f) and co2 (about -110 f), the big difference is if you ingest nos into your intake, you get more power, but with co2, you loose power. not an issue as far as i can see in my config as air intake is force fed via the intake in the nose, and the ic is/will be top mount, rear of the engine. NOS could be an explosive issue though, as i would have to spray it very close to the exhaust and turbo and even though it is slightly less dense than air, it could accumulate under the hood and boom, very bad day...

Water injection is a pretty sound concept in my book, and im still tossing that one around, ive seen some pretty impressive results , especially with boost applications. But i still need to educate myself more on the application, and if i spend any money on it at all, itll only be on the correct nozzles, the rest i can do myself (i think..) using vacuum actuators to increase or decrease flow with the revs, must read more though.

Ill still need to reduce the temp of the top mount ic at times, being a top mount, it wil be a heat soak at low speed and idle at stop lights, ect..

heres my latest musings on it.. using the controller above as the brain, and wiring the trigger to a higher pressure capable solenoid to release the co2 as needed, BUT also running high pressure macro line (used in paintball guns) to feed the solenoid valve. the lines are plastic(ish) capable of the temp fluctuations of co2 (800-1500 psi depending on ambient temps) but will also MELT when exposed to direct flame, there by bursting, releasing the charged co2 over the hot spot and putting out the fire. so you have a ic spray cooler and a basic suppression system in one set up... the extinguisher part is not my idea, just combining the two systems is. i saw the same fire extinguisher concept here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgMlTvFcncU&feature=channel co2 is also allot cheaper , and easier to have smaller tanks refilled..

Check prices on liquid nitrogen as opposed to CO2. You may be pleasantly surprised.

Heres a thought: Put your cars evaporator coil from your A/C system in between the compressor and the intake. The biggest problem would be ducting the air into a well designed plenum on both sides of the coil; there might not be enough room.

The only problem with Rosses idea is the parasitic draw from the compressor.

THE best route is an efficient airflow and recovery syatem that pulls cold air in and removes the hot air quickly.

A well designed (Subaru) top mount air inlet directed onto the charge cooler along with a molded exhaust removing the hot air and insulating the charge cooler from the engine from underneath is the best bet.

Yes there will be a parasitic lose, but so do superchargers. It all depends on the amount of cooling and the compressor efficiency etc...I just want someone to try it to figure if there is anything to gain from doing it that way. Like someone that has too much time on their hands and a dyno...