What do you need to know about antifreeze?

What do you need to know about antifreeze?

Often the cooling system and its main "working body" - antifreeze - are perceived during operation as something eternal. The crankshaft rotates the pump through the drive belts, drives the fluid through the passages and the fluid is cooled. What could be simpler? Actually, it's not a lubrication system where the engine oil takes huge loads.

Engine coolant is just as important as engine oil. It protects the engine from overheating and requires periodic changes as it can lose its properties over time. Coolant is a mixture of antifreeze and water, but the mixture itself is often called antifreeze. Antifreeze has no uniform classification. Automobile manufacturers specify different tolerances, and antifreeze manufacturers use a different set of additives and colorants. The use of antifreeze has its own nuances and secrets, ignorance of which can reduce engine life or even lead to irreparable damage.

How antifreeze works in the cooling system

When an internal combustion engine is running, a lot of heat is generated. If you don't cool the engine, it will overheat and parts will start to fail. To prevent this from happening, cars have a cooling system. Compared to the human body, antifreeze is the blood of the cooling system. It circulates in a closed circuit and transfers heat from the engine to the radiator, where the antifreeze cools and returns to the engine again. The coolant circulates through the system under the action of a water pump. As the antifreeze reaches operating temperature it runs in a small circuit - through the engine and the heating system only. This is necessary to warm up the engine faster. As soon as it reaches operating temperature, the thermostat opens and the coolant begins to circulate in a large circuit - including through the radiator. The antifreeze is cooled in the radiator cells due to the occurring air flow. If this flow is not sufficient for cooling, the fan is switched on. When heated, the coolant expands and the excess is discharged into the expansion tank.

What are the types of antifreeze

Tsaki advises that you familiarize yourself with the different types of antifreeze so you can choose the right one for your vehicle. According to the additives, there are four main types of antifreeze:

• norganic - silicate, with inorganic inhibitors. Inorganic substances, most commonly silicates, are used as corrosion inhibitors in ethylene glycol antifreeze. There are also phosphates, borates, nitrites, amines, nitrates and their various combinations;
• organic - carboxylate, with organic inhibitors. Organic carboxylic acids are used as corrosion inhibitors for ethylene glycol antifreeze. Such additives are also called carboxylate additives with organic inhibitors;
• hybrid - the corrosion inhibitor additives in these antifreeze are a mixture of organic and inorganic substances. That is, these are ethylene glycol antifreeze with silicate and carboxylate additives;
• lobride - such antifreezes use mineral additives, most often silicon compounds. This provides a higher boiling point - up to +135 °C - and longer service life.