The Liquid Nitrogen Fueled Engine: A Cool Demonstration of Pressure-Volume Work

TCE

The Chemical Educator

ISSN: 1430-4171 (electronic version)

Table of Contents

Abstract Volume 1 Issue 2 (1996), S1430-4171(96)02025-0

The Liquid Nitrogen Fueled Engine: A Cool Demonstration of Pressure-Volume Work

Robert Gustavson and Eugene T. Smith*

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA and Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL 32901-6988, USA

Published online: 25 May 1996

Abstract. A chemical demonstration illustrating pressure volume work is presented. Details are given for the construction of a small but powerful mechanical engine that is fueled with liquid nitrogen. Students are able to disassemble the engine to inspect the engine components and study the operating mechanism.

Key Words: Laboratories and Demonstrations; PV work; mechanical engines; heat of vaporization; Carnot theorem; Second Law of Thermodynamics

(*) Corresponding author. (E-mail: Smithg@roo.FIT.edu)

Article in PDF format (299 KB)

Supporting Materials:

sequence.zip (8 MB) 10.1007/s00897960025b; LNengine.zip (3.4 MB) 10.1007/s00897960025c
Editor’s note: The animation LNengine.mov is a close-up shot of the liquid nitrogen engine in operation. Sequence.mov begins with the assembly of the piston followed by the filling of the working fluid and ends with the device in operation. Seqsmall.mov is a lower resolution of sequence.mov to save on download time.