Nitrogen Tire Inflation

New Nitrogen Tiresaver Handheld Inflation System

Last week, at The Sema Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, we debuted a new product that could revolutionize the nitrogen tire inflation business.  It is a manual nitrogen tire inflation system, including an exchangeable membrane cartridge.  We intend to have this available for purchase beginning in January 2010.

It's low startup cost yields the potential for very high profitability.  And, perhaps at some point, availability to the average consumer for home use. 

You can find a video for this product, which has previously launched in Europe, here.

Pennsylvania Nitrogen Tire Inflation Grants Update

Pennsylvania recently concluded the second year of its three year program providing grant for nitrogen tire inflation equipment purchases.  Details of the program are as follows: :

    For fiscal years 2008-2009 through 2010-2011, authorize the Department to expend up to $100,000 annually from the Fund for a nitrogen tire inflation grant program.  Under this program, matching grants, not to exceed $5,000, could be awarded to automotive service providers who sell tires for up to fifty percent of the costs of purchasing and installing nitrogen tire inflation system. 

The application process typically ends in late August, but I would recommend getting your applications in early as the program has reached capacity in each of its first two years. 

American Muscle Now Offers Free Nitrogen Tire Filling

 American Muscle, the Mustang aftermarket authority, now offers free nitrogen tire inflation as an option on all tires.  The performance benefits associated with nitrogen inflation make sense when considering the high performance often demanded from the Mustang.  As the benefits of nitrogen become more well known, I would expect this to become the norm in the future.  If you want to be in the tire business, you will need to be offering nitrogen.

Nitrogen Tires Help Vancouver w/ Energy & Environmental Best Practices Award

In a recent announcement on Today's Trucking it was noted that the City of Vancouver (Canada) received an E3 award for Energy & Environmental Best Practices.  Nitrogen Tire Inflation was part of multiple steps taken to improve fuel efficiency by 4% and cut overall emissions by 0.4%.  You can read the complete press release here.

Costco Nitrogen Tire Inflation

It is widely known that most Costco locations provide nitrogen tire inflation with the purchase of a new set of tires.  However, Costco will not provide nitrogen for tires already purchased and filled with air.  It is only available on a new set of tires.  So where do you go if you want nitrogen filled tires but are not in the market for new tires?  Get Nitrogen, a consumer group that espouses the benefits of nitrogen tire inflation, provides a free nitrogen tire inflation dealer locator that lists local stations that offer a nitrogen inflation service.  Check it out and go green with nitrogen tires.  

Proper Purity for Commercial Truck Tire Nitrogen Inflation

A few weeks back, I authored a post about the proper nitrogen purity for car tires (93.4%).  I hope this has cleared up some of the confusion in the market about the correct purity.  Since this purity differs for commercial truck (long haul, mining, etc.) tires, I figured it would be valuable to cover that here as well. 

Based on partial pressures, the ideal purity in a 105 psig commercial truck tire is 97.4%.  Its important to note that all of the nitrogen inflation studies on commercial truck tires have been done at purities of 95-96%, and have shown outstanding benefits at that level.  This is probably due to (2) primary factors.  First, the purity is so close to the recommended 97.4% that O2 permeation is severely limited.  And second, regular tire maintenance programs are more common on these tires, so top offs occur on a frequent basis.

Here are the calculations that support 97.4% for truck tire nitrogen purity:

• O2 makes up 20.9% of atmosphere, yielding a partial pressure of (0 + 14.7) * .209 = 3.07 in the atmosphere
• In an air filled 105 psig tire, the partial pressure of O2 is (105 + 14.7) * .209 = 25.02 in the tire.
  • This pressures want to equalize, so the O2 from the tire leaks to atmosphere   
• In a 97.4% nitrogen filled 105 psig tire, the partial pressure of O2 is (105 + 14.7) * .025 = 3.1 in the tire. 
  • The pressures are equalized, so the O2 is much more content in the tire, and doesnt look to escape to atmosphere.

So, its important to remember that you need higher purity in a truck tire than a car tire to equalize the O2 partial pressures.  Not every nitrogen generator may be capable of providing this higher purity at a sufficient flow rate to effectively fill truck tires. 

Nitrogen Tire Inflation Benefits Video

Here is a video that we put together to identify the benefits of nitrogen inflation.  It was made 3-4 years ago, and is fairly basic, but outlines the advantages.  Enjoy.

Advantages of Nitrogen Filled Tires

Are Nitrogen Molecules Truly Larger than Oxygen Molecules?

There is some confusion between effusivity and permeation with regards to nitrogen tire inflation.  It is important to note that permeation, not effusivity, explains the migration of oxygen through the tire.  So Graham's Law does not apply.  This permeation is covered by Fick's Law of Diffusion and Henry's Law of Solubilities.   A lot of consumers mistakenly believe that since Oxygen is higher on the periodic table that it is thus a larger molecule, which is untrue.  Here is a white paper that explains this much better than I can:   O2 vs. N2

Payback Calculators for Nitrogen Tire Inflation

There are numerous calculators out there to gauge the payback for a nitrogen tire filling service.  I have attached links to them below:

Consumer (Driver) Payback

Dealership N2 Generator Purchase Payback

Commercial Fleet N2 Generator Purchase Payback  

Nitrogen Inflation Startup Marketing Kit

People often underestimate the amount of preparation that goes into a dealership offering a new service, such as nitrogen tire filling.  Parker Hannifin offers the best startup marketing kit available, including all material necessary to have your nitrogen inflation service be an immediate success.  The details of our startup marketing kit are included below:

Parker Hannifin Startup Marketing Kit

Proper Purity for Nitrogen Filled Tires

There is some confusion in the marketplace about what is the correct tire purity for nitrogen inflated tires.  The market has moved toward a 95% in tire purity as the standard, but is that the best fit for the application? 

Based on partial pressures, the ideal purity in a 32 psig passenger tire is 93.6%.  Here are the calculations that support 93.6%:

• O2 makes up 20.9% of atmosphere, yielding a partial pressure of (0 + 14.7) * .209 = 3.07 in the atmosphere
• In an air filled 32 psig tire, the partial pressure of O2 is (32 + 14.7) * .209 = 9.76 in the tire.
  • The pressures want to equalize, so the O2 from the tire leaks to atmosphere 
• In a 93.4% nitrogen filled 32 psig tire, the partial pressure of O2 is (32 + 14.7) * .066 = 3.07 in the tire. 
  •  The pressures are equalized, so the O2 is much more content in the tire, and doesnt look to escape. 

What is the harm then if you are higher than 93.4% in a 32 psig car tire?  Well, believe it or not, NHTSA has proven that O2 will begin to leak back into the tire.  They presented this information at ITEC in 2008, and it is covered on slide 27 of the following presentation:  NHTSA Nitrogen ITEC

95% has become the standard because some generator manufacturers, looking for differentiation, offered higher purity from their equipment.  They created value in this higher purity with their customers, primarily auto dealers.  Parker Hannifin ships all generators to provide this 95% in the tire, but purity can easily be adjusted down (or up) if you so choose. 

Jay Leno Nitrogen Tire Inflation Video

Here is a video from Jay Leno that covers the benefits of nitrogen tire inflation.  Most drivers I have discussed this video with like it b/c it clearly breaks out the advantage of having nitrogen filled tires. 

Jay Leno Nitrogen Video

SEMA Show 2009

  Parker Hannifin will be exhibiting their complete line of nitrogen inflation equipment at the 2009 Sema Sow, Tuesday, Nov 3 through Friday, Nov 6.  We will be debuting a new product that should revolutionize the nitrogen inflation marketplace.  Visit us at booth 41097, we look forward to seeing you there. 

Tire Manufacturers on Nitrogen Tire Inflation

Michelin says:  "Supports the use of nitrogen based on its ability to better retain air over over a period of time."

Michelin Nitrogen

Goodyear says:  "Supports the use of nitrogen as an inflation gas in all...products, based on the ability for a tire to retain pressure for a longer period of time."

Goodyear Nitrogen

Bridgestone says: "There's nothing you can do that is better for your tires than maintaining the right inflation pressure - all the time.  Nitrogen could help you do that."

Bridgestone Nitrogen

Common Customer Objections to Nitrogen Filled Tires

Nitrogen tire inflation, being a relatively new service in auto dealerships, can sometimes yield skepticism from customers.  There is a certain segment of the population that views it as a myth or snake oil science.  This, coupled with some unscrupulous service writers who exaggerate the benefits, often can leave a bad taste in the drivers mouth.  I wanted to cover some of the common objections I hear, and how I educate the customer on the true benefit of nitrogen filled tires.  Knowing how to address these issues correctly will buildup a trust with your customer and may also increase the success of the nitrogen inflation service at your facility.

1. "Changing the gas in my tire is not going to make a difference at all."  A tire filled with nitrogen retains its pressure 3-4x longer than its air filled counterpart.  NHTSA has stated that the average vehicle in North America is riding on tires underinflated by 10-11%, which results in a 3.3% drop in fuel economy and 18-20% shorter tread life. 
2. "Look at the periodic table, Oxygen is larger than Nitrogen."  Oxygen has a larger molecular weight than nitrogen, but nitrogen is fractionally larger.  Oxygen, being smaller, can permeate through the rubber tire and lead to pressure loss. 
3. "My tire already has 78.1% nitrogen, increasing that to 95% is not going to make a difference."  We are not adding to the nitrogen already in your tire, as it is filled with oil, water vapor and other contaminants.  The service actually removes the wet, dirty 78.1% nitrogen from your tire and replaces it with clean, dry 95% nitrogen.  It is important to remove the existing "wet" nitrogen because water vapor plays a significant role in pressure fluctuation. 
4. "You remove the oxygen from inside the tire, but oxygen still attacks from the outside."  Oxygen does the majority of its damage to a tire as it permeates through the sidewall.  It breaks down the rubber and causes the steel belts to rust and wear.  While oxygen on the outside of the tire is still in contact with the surface, it isn't as large of an issue.
5. "Air has been good enough for 100 years."  The benefits of nitrogen in relation to pressure retention have long been known.  It has been used for years by Nascar, Formula 1, the US military and the FAA.  It is only recently that the cost of this technolgy has gotten to level that it can be offered to consumers. 
6. "Nitrogen and air react similarly to temperature changes."  This is true, when considering dry air.  However, most auto shops do not have dry air.  And for those that do, the dewpoint of nitrogen (-50F) dwarfs their offering (35F+).  Water vapor in the tire leads to pressure fluctuations which can cause improper tread wear compromise fuel economy.
7. "If Oxygen permeates the tire, eventually my tire will be a 95% nitrogen tire."  If your tires are not maintained, you will see a higher nitrogen purity in your tire.  Maybe as high as 83-84%.  But the time it takes, and negative effect on your tires, make reaching 95% impractical.  
8. "Its not worth the price."  NHTSA reports that the average vehicle in the USA is riding around on tires that are underinflated by 10-11%.  This results in a 3.3% drop in fuel efficiency and 18-20% tread life.  Nitrogen tire inflation retains pressure longer between service visits, yielding a significant savings for the average driver.

Knowing how to best address your customers concerns will build value and increase your success rate. 

Safeway Chooses Nitrogen Tire Inflation

I found this article at Transport Topics online.  Safeway is switching to nitrogen inflation to improve tire performance.  Here is the text from the release:

Safeway Fleet Set to Fill Tires With Nitrogen

Grocery retailer Safeway Inc. said it will begin inflating its truck and trailer fleet tires with nitrogen instead of compressed air.

“Nitrogen is a smart alternative to compressed air; it keeps tires at a consistent pressure, which directly impacts blowouts and other tire-related issues that reduce the productivity of our trucks,” said Brea Gifford, truck repair manager for Safeway in Tempe, Ariz.

Safeway plans to use nitrogen tire inflation in about 80 tractors and 320 trailers, the company said in a joint statement with NitrogenMan, the Phoenix-based company that will supply Safeway with nitrogen for its tires.

Safeway, also based in Phoenix, expects to use nitrogen fleetwide by August, the company said in its June 25 statement.

Or you can read it here: Safeway Nitrogen

The Value of Nitrogen Tire Inflation to Your Service Department

I was looking back through some older versions of Fixed Ops magazine, and I found this article about the value of nitrogen inflation to a service drive.  This is a service that offers great benefits to the consumer, and is also profitable for the dealership.  It is a win-win situation.  It is and ideal service for dealerships looking to increase revenues during this tough period. 

The article, which starts on page 18, is well written and informative, enjoy. 

Nitrogen Value

Nitrogen Tire Inflation Newscast

Here is an informative news article and accompanying video about benefits of nitrogen tire inflation.  It appeared on KTVK Channel 3 in Arizona.  Be sure to notice the Get Nitrogen website at the end of the video, of which Parker Hannifin is a member.

 KTVK3 Nitrogen Article & Newscast

Pennsylvania Nitrogen Tire Inflation Grants

As we reported on this blog last year, Pennsylvania is offering $5K grants for the purchase of nitrogen tire inflation equipment.  Here are the details of that program, which was launched recently by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.  Please note that the application process ends August 28th.

Pennsylvania Nitrogen Tire Inflation Grant

TIre Nitrogen Inflation Testimonial Video

In 2005, Parker Hannifin interviewed some nitrogen filled tire users and put together a video testimonial.  Note the benefits that these users have seen, and how truly impressive they are.  While this video focused on commercial truck users, it is important to note that ordinary, everyday drivers should see similar results.  Commercial trucks are steadfast about tire maintenance, and more attentive than the average driver.  They are seeing these benefits even though their tires were maintained regularly with air.

And remember, the user that states he saw a 0.1 mpg improvement is discussing trucks that typically get around 5.5 mpg (a 2% improvement).

You can view the video here:  Nitrogen Tire Inflation Testimonial Video