http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF6/680.html

Saw this and was kind of interesting. I usually go 50/50 because coolant is soooo expensive and it is ample for me. But, ive heard of people going straight antifreeze and i figured that was probably a bad idea but had no arguments for it. Just curious if this article is right, if you go past about 60/40, does the freezing point raise up again?

 

Interesting! Who knew!

On the flip side of that, does anybody know the benefits / ill effects of running 100% glycol (no water) in the hot summer?? A friend of a friend who is involved in racing claims they run straight glycol (no water mixed in) since it won't boil at all that way??

That's funny though ..... "anti-freeze" will actually freeze without water in it?!

 

well, water cools way better then antifreeze

antifreeze coolant is mainly for freeze protection(-40) and additives are anticorrosives and water pump lube

the higher boiling point comes from the pressurized system

 

^ that's what I thought.

 

Flaws with water is it causes corrosion, isn't pure unless triple distilled (contains lots of minerals), and high freezing point.

Other than that, water is an awesome heat conducter. pv=nrt is the equation for pressure and temperature. As pressure increases, boiling point also increases.

 

I heard from a long-time mechanic that the opposite is true. It surprised me.

 

since we are on the subject, did you know that the freeze plugs in your block won,t save it from cracking the block if it freezes up?
Even though they are widely known as "freeze plugs" they just plug up holes leftover from the casting process.

 

Everyone does know that mixing water with antifreeze is what you are suppose to do, right? glycol mixed with water raises the boiling point and lowers the freezing point. Glycol all by itself has a lot lower boiling point, and a lot higher freezing point. Mix water with it, and it changes that. I mixed 70/30; which is suppose to be the max for getting the highest boiling point and lowest freezing point.

What?! Won't boil at all? Everything has a boiling point, and 100% glycol is not for max boiling/freezing point. Anyone ever look on the back of the bottles of antifreeze? Some tell you how much water to add to get the max or both. Has a little table and everything.

 

I know, but we got into this big debate about it. The guy is an older fellow, and has been in the racing business for a long time AFAIK? The other thing he claimed was because of the lubrication factor of glycol vs water? I dunno. He's not the mechanic AFAIK, but says that's what they do? I dunno man, I'm just a young buck (23) and he's an old guy (well into his 60's) who's been around for awhile, so who am I to argue?

 

"Anti-Freeze" is ethylene glycol. Freezing point is approx 9*F, boiling point at atmospheric pressure is approx. 387*F.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethylene_glycol

 

he might do it for not boiling, but it doesn;t mean it cools any better.................

 

I heard also that if you don't have the right mixture of water and antifreeze the radiator will develop a slight charge. And this will speed up corrosion, or maybe the rate of particle deposition in passages, something like that.

 

electrolisis(sp?), this is seen more with old coolant(pH off)

 

in high school we got a salt water/antifreeze solution to almost double the freezing point and 10% gain on boiling point but dont think id chance it in a car.

 

agreed, probably cancels out the anyi-corrosive additives...