fuel-ish
Ward Lauren’s special feature article reports that BHP Billiton plans to replace the diesel engines in their barges and tugs with nitrous oxide engines. The first problem with this is that most barges don’t have engines, they are towed or pushed by tugboats. The second problem is that nitrous oxide is non-combustible, therefore cannot be used as fuel so there could be no such thing as a nitrous oxide engine. Diesel engines can be fitted with nitrous oxide injection, which injects the gas into the engines fuel injection system, which is probably what our author was referring to.
The N2O then decomposes in the high temperature into Nitrogen and Oxygen. The Oxygen combines with Oxygen in intake air allowing more fuel to be oxidized or burned, giving the engine a boost in power. This is a common method used in racing engines to improve performance and is normally used in short bursts to conserve the N2O which is bulky to store in the large quantities that would be required for continuous operation. The Nitrogen is discarded through the exhaust system into the atmosphere which is naturally 79% Nitrogen so this discarded gas cannot be considered a contaminate, but an additive.
Nitrous oxide is a greenhouse gas, that is, a gas which absorbs and emits infrared heat energy. However, it is decomposed in the engine so it cannot re-enter the atmosphere. The author refers to the use of nitrous oxide as an “environmental action.” I guess so, if making the tugboats more powerful so they tug faster is considered an environmental action. Nitrous oxide has 296 times the effect of carbon dioxide for producing global warming. However, since it is naturally produced by bacteria in soil and water, it is difficult for the Greens to use as political ammunition preferring to point to carbon dioxide which can be traced to human activity like transportation, industry and exhaling. When we exhale, us mammals discharge our CO2 waste into the atmosphere. However, attempting to ban exhaling would be considered politically incorrect. Fortunately plants are designed to inhale CO2 keeping the atmosphere in balance. This is part of the carbon cycle. Incidentally, the major greenhouse gas is water vapor, while technically not a gas, contributes up the 70% of the so called, greenhouse effect. It’s a good thing that we have these heating gases in our atmosphere because if we didn’t we’d be a bunch of very cold critters.
Jack Singleton