NASCAR: Chemistry On The Fast Track By Brian Rohrig

The article written by Brian Rohrig titled, NASCAR: Chemistry on the Fast Track, released in the February 2007 issue of ChemMatters, tackles the interesting challenge of relating racing to chemistry. Throughout the article, Brian uses the technology and equipment utilized in the sport to draw connections between the general field of chemistry and NASCAR, a famous North American racing series, whilst explaining the general rules and regulations unique to the NASCAR series. Many individuals today seem to forget that science is not only found in a textbook, research paper, or lab. Science is present in our world everywhere, whether it is racing, gaming, or simply breathing. Chemistry can also be found in every single interaction in the universe,

The first example he uses to prove that chemistry is a major component in racing is the use of Nomex in racing helmets and suits as a fire retardant material. Currently Nomex continues to be one of the most fire retardant textiles available and is synthesized through the condensation reaction of isophthaloylchloride and meta-phenylenediamine. Without the use of Nomex textiles, racing would be a much more dangerous sport as fires occasionally occur after crashes. Another important technology utilized in motorsports is Kevlar which is also used in the manufacture of racing helmets as the outer shell used to protect the drivers from impacts of up to 300g’s. Furthermore, Kevlar is another polymer produced through the synthesis of two monomers. Another important component used in NASCAR are tires. Tires have a strong relation to chemistry as the specific compounds that they use in sticky race car slicks are based upon knowledge from organic chemistry. Furthermore, unlike ordinary road tires which are usually meant to be efficient, wear slowly, and work in multiple environmental conditions, race tires are made of much stickier rubber which have very high wear rates due to the fact that the compound actually melts slightly in order to increase the traction. The amount of pressure in race

Additionally, the race tires are filled up with nitrogen gas instead of regular air due to the higher moisture concentration in air, which leads to more variability in tire pressures during races when the air inside the tire heats up. Moreover, the increased pressure changes in air can lead to tires rupturing, hence the usage of nitrogen. However, chemistry is not only used to keep the drivers safe, it is also used to propel stock cars, as fuel is another aspect that chemistry heavily relates too. Fuels in NASCAR are mostly made up of hydrocarbons, specifically isooctane, however they add tetraethyl lead in order to improve the combustion efficiency of the reaction. Moreover, other additives are also added in order to improve the octane rating to 110. The Octane rating refers to the amount of compression that the fuel can undergo before a combustion reaction occurs. Furthermore, the reason behind the use of isooctane instead of normal octane, is that the activation energy required for combustion is higher with isooctane due the more stable shape, translating to