Apart from a house, a car is often the second most expensive asset that people own. It is therefore rather important that we look after our cars and ensure that only quality parts are put inside them. This will ensure they will live a longer life, will be less likely to break down and won’t need to be serviced as often.
An aluminium radiator’s main purpose is to transfer heat energy from one area to another. Now this transfer may be to facilitate the heating of one object or the cooling of another. Although most commonly found in automobiles, radiators are also found in consumer electronics, such as in laptops for cooling. Invented in the mid 1800s we still use the radiator to this day and it has potential use for many years into the future.
In a vehicle the main purpose of an aluminium radiator is to cool the engine. This is needed because as the engine gets hotter, it becomes much less effective at its job and the risk of damage is greatly increased. If the radiator fails for any reason then the engine is likely to overheat which will end up costing thousands of dollars to repair.
The aluminium radiator works by passing a type of liquid (which cools) through the engine block. At this point it is heated up and pushed back through the radiator where it loses the heat to the air outside. The special cooling liquid has similar properties to water although there are special oil based versions available.
In the past radiators had a central core made out of materials such as copper and brass. Such materials have shown a track record of performance in most hot environments. In recent days radiators made out of aluminium have become more common, mainly due to an abundance of this material compared to a shortage (and higher cost). Tests have shown that the aluminium radiators have similar cooling properties to the other materials and come out at a much lower cost.
The addition of a fan to the front of a radiator can also increase the cooling capacity. It is able blow fresh (and cooler air) through the radiator and this pushes the hotter air out. Because the radiator constantly has warm liquid to cool down there is always an abundance of hot air to be removed.