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Re: Radiator Fluid 'Wetting Agent'???[850/1995] posted by skip on
Tuesday, 17 March 1998, at 11:02 a.m.
Steve,
I'm no engineer but from what I've read over the years water is about the best medium to transfer heat from the engine to the atmosphere via the radiator (given the range of conditions found in an automobile engine). Toss in a 50% mix of good antifreeze to prevent freezing and corrosion and you've got it. If your temp runs high, look for another cause; blocked air flow, corrosion in radiator or block, bad thermostat, collapsed hose, bad cap, etc.
Skip
Why I'm asking...[850/1995] posted by Steve on
Tuesday, 17 March 1998, at 11:21 a.m.
I agree- water and anti-freeze are a "tried and true" combination. I was thinking about some mild turbo boosting, though, and would like to retain as much engine longevity as possible without spending the bucks on a higher-efficiency radiator or intercooler.
Since water is a (slightly) polar molecule, I suppose it is possible that an "anti-polarizing" additive could increase the contact between water and radiator at a molecular level, increasing heat transfer efficiency. I have no idea whether this is the method of operation of a wetting agent or not, though.
Anyone know?
Re: Why I'm asking...[850/1995] posted by Paul Elliott on
Tuesday, 17 March 1998, at 12:22 p.m.
Hi Steve, I've been walking by those little pink bottles in autoparts stores for some time now, and have been tempted to buy them on more than one occasion....Although my 854T almost always seems to be exactly half way up the scale, I still keep hearing the voices of those who, on various BBS' I belong to , have reported substantial drops in coolant temperature after using a bottle, so.....
Re: Why I'm asking...[850/1995] posted by Rick on
Friday, 20 March 1998, at 9:54 p.m.
Wetting agents work by reducing the surface tension of the water allowing it to flow more freely. The little bottle of rinse aid in your dishwasher is a wetting agent (remember "sheeting action").
I crew on a race car in SCCA we had always used wetting agents and the car always ran hot (oh boy did it run hot sometimes). Finaly when we were preping the car for a race I talked the boss into putting 50/50 mix of Volvo antifreeze and good old H2O in the system. The car ran cooler afterward and boiling point of the fluid was higher.
Also on a street car cooler is not better. The control unit looks at coolant tempture and if it is too low the car never comes out of the warm up mode.
My suggestion is save your money the cooling system on your Volvo has the extra cap to handle what you are planing.