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    The Science of NASCAR

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    BurhanMalik
    The sport of NASCAR relies heavily on chemistry for driver safety and high performance race cars. Some key ways chemistry helps include durable Lexan windshields that won't shatter but can dent, helmets made of carbon, glass and Kevlar that can withstand 300 Gs of force, fuel tanks with inner bladders and foam layers to prevent sloshing and explosions, and cooling systems that use the endothermic evaporation of solid carbon dioxide to keep drivers cool. NASCAR cars also use high-octane leaded gasoline and have finely tuned V8 engines with pistons, connecting rods and crankshafts that combust fuel to power the cars, while specially designed thin, high-pressure tires filled with moisture

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    The Science of NASCAR

    Uploaded by

    BurhanMalik
    136 views2 pages
    The sport of NASCAR relies heavily on chemistry for driver safety and high performance race cars. Some key ways chemistry helps include durable Lexan windshields that won't shatter but can dent, helmets made of carbon, glass and Kevlar that can withstand 300 Gs of force, fuel tanks with inner bladders and foam layers to prevent sloshing and explosions, and cooling systems that use the endothermic evaporation of solid carbon dioxide to keep drivers cool. NASCAR cars also use high-octane leaded gasoline and have finely tuned V8 engines with pistons, connecting rods and crankshafts that combust fuel to power the cars, while specially designed thin, high-pressure tires filled with moisture

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    chemistry sbi4u great if u looking for chem stuff

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    The sport of NASCAR relies heavily on chemistry for driver safety and high performance race cars. Some key ways chemistry helps include durable Lexan windshields that won't shatter but can dent, helmets made of carbon, glass and Kevlar that can withstand 300 Gs of force, fuel tanks with inner bladders and foam layers to prevent sloshing and explosions, and cooling systems that use the endothermic evaporation of solid carbon dioxide to keep drivers cool. NASCAR cars also use high-octane leaded gasoline and have finely tuned V8 engines with pistons, connecting rods and crankshafts that combust fuel to power the cars, while specially designed thin, high-pressure tires filled with moisture

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    136 views2 pages

    The Science of NASCAR

    Uploaded by

    BurhanMalik
    The sport of NASCAR relies heavily on chemistry for driver safety and high performance race cars. Some key ways chemistry helps include durable Lexan windshields that won't shatter but can dent, helmets made of carbon, glass and Kevlar that can withstand 300 Gs of force, fuel tanks with inner bladders and foam layers to prevent sloshing and explosions, and cooling systems that use the endothermic evaporation of solid carbon dioxide to keep drivers cool. NASCAR cars also use high-octane leaded gasoline and have finely tuned V8 engines with pistons, connecting rods and crankshafts that combust fuel to power the cars, while specially designed thin, high-pressure tires filled with moisture

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
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    The Science of NASCAR

    The sport of NASCAR and chemistry go hand in hand. Underneath the hood of every race car, chemical
    reactions are taking place at a rapid place. The drivers and association of NASCAR heavily rely on the
    science of chemistry for the safety of the drivers and the functioning abilities of the race cars. One of the
    biggest concerns for NASCAR is ensuring the safety of their drivers. Some of the ways NASACAR is
    able to protect its drivers is through durable windshields, specially designed helmets, custom five point
    harness, custom gas tanks and a cooling system. The windshields of a race car are extremely durable yet
    very soft as it is made of a material called Lexan. Lexan is made from a thermoplastic polymer known as
    polycarbonate. Lexan is also used to make iPods CDs DVDs and is the chief component of bulletproof
    glass. Although Lexan windshields can be easily dented or scratched but will not shatter. In addition to the
    windshields, NASCAR drivers are also provided with helmets that are specially designed for them. These
    racing helmets are made of three main components consisting of the outer shell, a foam liner and a formfitting inner liner. The hard outer shell is coated with a composite of carbon, glass, and Kevlar which is an
    extremely tough polymer that is also used in bulletproof vests. Underneath the outer shell is the foam
    liner made of polystyrene or polypropylene. The final component of the helmet is the foam-fitting inner
    liner is composed of either nylon or Normex, a fire-resistant material. These helmets are designed to
    withstand 300 Gs of force. Gas tanks used in race cars usually hold 22 gallons of gasoline. The tank is
    composed of an inner elastic bladder made of a thermoplastic elastomer. The tank is also filled with
    polyurethane foam, which prevents the sloshing of fuel. The foam also absorbs some of the impact from
    an explosion. Additionally, temperatures could easily reach 150F within the car during a car so solid
    carbon dioxide is used within the cooling system. The stream of air cools the driver through the
    endothermic process of evaporation.
    The science of Chemistry also helps race cars function and perform. NASCAR cars have V-8 engine
    which consists 8 cylinders with pistons pumping within them in a V shape to reduce engine vibration. The
    volume of each cylinder is known as its displacement. Typical NASCAR cars have an engine
    displacement between 5735 cc to 5867 cc. Within each cylinder is a piston which is rounded piece of
    cylindrical metal fitted to move up and down rapidly within the cylinder. As the piston moves upward,
    gases within the cylinder are compressed. As the cylinder moves downward, the gases with in the cylinder
    expand. As the piston pump up and down, a connecting rod attached to the piston is connected to the
    crankshaft which then rotates quickly ultimately causing the tires to spin. To get the pistons working, a
    mixture of fuel within each cylinder is ignited by a spark from the spark plug. As the fuel combusts, it
    undergoes a chemical reaction, yielding gaseous byproducts. Liquid gasoline doesnt burn, meaning the
    vapour above the liquid burns. The chemical equation for the combustion of octane within gasoline is:
    2C8H18 (g) + 25O2 (g) = 16CO2 (g) + 18H2O (g). The reaction is highly exothermic meaning it releases
    energy into its surroundings causing the pistons to move within the cylinders.
    Although NASCAR race cars do use gasoline, the type used by NASCAR is leaded 110-octane gasoline.
    The lead is a form of a compound called tetraethyl lead, which reduces engine knocking. Knocking is the
    loud clanging noise made when the fuel in the cylinder is ignited early. This particular type of gasoline
    also contains Pb (CH2CH3) which improves the performance of the gas and preventing it from igniting as
    it is compressed. Octane ratings can be determined by a formula that represents the average resistance of
    the gas to the engine knock or the amount of fuel can be compressed before it automatically ignites. The

    higher the octane rating, the more gas can be compressed in the cylinders before ignition resulting in
    more fuel being burned and more power. Octane is a hydrocarbon which can be easily compressed
    without igniting while isooctane, an isomer of octane, is even better at being compressed without igniting.
    Isooctane is also better than octane because isooctane is more of a stable compound then octane. The
    combustion of isooctane requires a greater activation energy then octane and is therefore less likely to
    ignite due to increase pressure. Additionally, tires are a key part of a race car. These tires are very thin to
    prevent friction between the tire and the road and have no treads producing better traction. These tires are
    also often inflated when their first installed. This is because as the race progresses, the temperature of the
    tires increase resulting in a higher pressure in the tires which is in accordance to Gay-Lussacs law.
    Furthermore, NASCAR tires are filled with nitrogen because nitrogen contains less moisture. As the
    temperature of the tires increase, moisture in the tire vaporise and expand affecting the handling of the
    car. In conclusion, without chemistry, the sport of NASCAR would not be the same as the sport many
    enjoy today.

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