Fact 1: The US Department of Energy estimates that we could save two million gallons of gasoline every day if our tires were properly inflated.Fact 2: An estimated 30-50 percent of all vehicles on the road are operating with at least one under-inflated tire resulting in decreased fuel economy.
Fact 3: Oxygen and moisture in air diffuses through tires 30-40 percent faster than nitrogen resulting in under-inflated tires.
Conclusion: inflate your tires with nitrogen to improve fuel economy and help reduce oil imports.
All well and good if you can find nitrogen to fill your tires with in the first place.
Enter TireLast Systems, who announced the new UltraAir Nitrogen Vending Station which provides, a cashless, VendiPay prepaid smart card smart-card-operated, self-service nitrogen gas dispenser for cars and light trucks. The nitrogen that UltraAir provides is basically compressed air with the oxygen and moisture removed. With nitrogen constituting 78 percent of Earth's atmosphere by volume, removing the oxygen and moisture pretty much just leaves nitrogen.
The UltraAir also features microprocessor controlled tire inflation supplied to any desired pressure. Payment will be via prepaid Inflation Cards available soon at retail stores.
Analysis: Good idea - deserves to make a lot of money.
Related:
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Nitrogen Vending Tire Inflation Station for Autos and Light Trucks
LAFAYETTE, Colo., Feb. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- TireLast Systems located in Lafayette, Colorado has just announced their new UltraAir(TM) Nitrogen Vending Station, a cashless, RFID, smart-card-operated, self-service nitrogen gas dispenser for autos and light trucks. UltraAir(TM) nitrogen is compressed air with the oxygen and moisture removed. "Car and light truck owners have been asking us for a self-service vending unit that will enable them to fill their tires with nitrogen easily and inexpensively," states TireLast president Nick Verini. "Drivers will now be able to get nitrogen on the road with 24-hour access."
This new vending machine features a VendiPay(TM) prepaid smart card and an advanced microprocessor for controlling the filling of tires. The unit can supply nitrogen at the desired pressure with the touch of a button. The
consumer will be able to pay for this unique service using prepaid Inflation Cards(TM) available soon at retail stores.
Nick Verini states, "Oxygen and moisture in air diffuses through tires 30- 40% faster than nitrogen resulting in under-inflated tires. The US Department of Energy estimates that we could save two million gallons of gasoline every day if our tires were properly inflated. Furthermore, tires sometimes fail on the road due to blow-outs which may be caused by weakening of the tire's internal steel belts. Research indicates that elimination of wet air as a pressurizing medium would substantially reduce this weakening and reduce the number of tire failures."
An estimated 30-50% of all vehicles on the road are operating with at least one under-inflated tire resulting in decreased fuel economy. As gasoline prices remain high this issue will become all the more important for consumers. The units will be manufactured in Colorado, USA and are available immediately.
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1. "nitrogen constituting 78 percent of Earth's atmosphere by volume" putting a dollar in quarters into the air pump you can find at any gas station should work just fine, as long as you check you check the tire pressure every so often.
Posted at 8:14AM on Feb 14th 2007 by Dave