Can you put nitrous on a diesel

Consequently, if nitrous oxide is introduced into the intake air stream, a proportional amount of fuel must also be added to prevent leaning out the mixture.

More fuel and the oxygen to burn it — bingo, more power. How much power can be generated depends on how much nitrous oxide and extra fuel is injected, but gains of 50 to horsepower are common.

Much higher gains are possible if the engine is built to withstand it. Consequently, nitrous oxide is only injected for short spurts at full throttle, usually lasting no more than seconds at a time. To begin, a turbo-diesel has no air throttle. It is free to intake as much air as it can draw, or the turbocharger can supply, on every intake stroke. Therefore, hot rodding the diesel is a matter of supplying the engine with as much fuel as can be burned by the air available at maximum power.

In fact, you can overfuel a diesel in the quest for power, but that results in excessive exhaust gas temperatures that will kill the turbocharger and the engine. As a result of heat produced by a sequential combustion event, this mixture can be ignited before or within the turbocharger. Nitrous backfires are inherently dangerous to turbochargers are may cause catastrophic damage. This reiterates the fact that nitrous kits must be properly tuned to match the characteristics of their intended application.

Wet Nitrous Oxide System A "wet" nitrous system is one that injects both fuel and nitrous oxide into the intake manifold. This is typically found in carbureted gasoline applications and the addition of fuel is necessary to maintain a stoichiometric air-to-fuel ratio. Wet nitrous systems are not found on diesel engines, as fuel cannot be drawn into the cylinder during the intake stroke; only air can be present in the combustion chamber during the compression stroke, and fuel is injected directly into the cylinder at or near the top of the compression stroke after the air has been compressed.

Due to the fundamental operation of a diesel, a wet nitrous injection system is simply and inherently incompatible. Dry Nitrous Oxide System A "dry" nitrous system is one that injects nitrous oxide into the intake manifold. Dry nitrous oxide systems are compatible with diesel engines. A number of kits are available for Cummins, Duramax, and Power Stroke diesel engines. The quantity of nitrous injected for a given set of conditions is dictated by the size of the nozzle orifice and the number of nozzles installed for a particular setup.

Nozzles are typically installed through the intake elbow or air horn of the engine. Direct Port Nitrous System Direct port nitrous injection is a wet system that injects nitrous oxide and a metered amount of fuel directly into the combustion chamber. Direct port systems are not compatible with diesel engines for the same reasons a standard wet system is incompatible. A -6 feed line should be used instead of a -4, a.

That is, two 0. This jetting discrepancy is one of the biggest mistakes that novice enthusiasts make, as three solenoids with 0. Hitting a huge shot of spray right off idle is a good way to destroy parts; instead, nitrous must be ramped in as a diesel engine starts to produce boost and power. While a small shot of nitrous can be used to spool a turbo, large hits should be best saved for later in the rpm band and when boost is up above 20psi.

The solenoids can be triggered in a variety of ways: either manually, with pressure switches or with controllers like those made by Nitrous Express or Nitrous Oxide Systems. Nitrous can even be controlled by boost levels or set to activate in a certain gear if more advanced controllers are used. While nitrous can be one of the most satisfying ways of producing power, it can also be one of the most dangerous.

To prevent damages, when running a big shot, the turbocharger must be heavily wastegated in order to prevent overspeeding—running an external wastegate is a good idea, but running both internal and external gates is an even better one.

Furthermore, keeping EGT well in check with water-to-air intercooling or water injection is also recommended. Lastly, we suggest never triggering a large shot of nitrous below psi of boost, as a large backfire can occur. Beyond that range—and into the hp range—an engine must be built specifically with nitrous in mind, with stronger parts and more advanced controls to keep problems at a minimum.

As more and more diesel racers experiment with nitrous, our knowledge base will increase, and hey, who knows: a dependable ,hp shot may be just around the corner.

Your email address will not be published. Share Tweet 0. Pin it 0. Wayne uses so much nitrous that he has two fill bottles mounted on the rear of the truck to combat any pressure drops.

Up next. Published on 07 January Author Jason Sands. Share article The post has been shared by 15 people.