Over the last several years, there has been growing support for the use of nitrogen in automotive tires as a replacement for standard air. Benefits touted by supporters include enhanced handling, improved fuel efficiency, extended tire life, enhanced road safety, and even protection of the Earth. Many of these benefits are claimed to be due to the large size, low permeability, and low reactivity of nitrogen molecules in comparison to other gaseous species such as oxygen. A brief history of such nitrogen use will be presented and each of the various claims will be evaluated using basic concepts from general and organic chemistry.

Fact and fiction of nitrogen-filled tires for enhanced automotive performance

240th National Meeting (2010)

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