Ozone

Ozone O3 is a molecule composed by three atoms of oxygen. Ozone existence was supposed from 1871 by Van Marum, who noticed its odour in the air crossed by electricity discharges, and was finally discovered an named - from the Greek word “ozein”, to smell - in 1840 by Schömbein,. Marignac, Becquerel and Fremy, they investigated and established the ozone’s nature, and its formula and constitution were later determined and introduced by J. L. Soret investigations.

Because of its powerful oxidative and bactericide effects, ozone is used to renovate the air in confined atmospheres, and for water sterilization and treatment. The interest of the ozone applications in water treatment, it is due so much for its particularly energetic oxidizing characteristics, profited to degrade or eliminate some undesirable organic or mineral substances, as for its powerful bactericide and virucidal strength.

The oxidating action of ozone can be presented in three different forms:

Ozone decomposes slowly at room-temperature, and the spare atom of oxygen is absorbed by the reducing substances. Thus, the oxidative and clean air in countryside contains from 200 to 400 mg. of ozone per 100 m3. In countryside, ozone is mainly produced by green plants photosynthesis. On the contrary, the air in towns, laden with a weighty proportion of reducing powdered particles, it contains no more than 2 mg. of ozone per 100 m3. Because of its capacity of absorption, ozone in stratosphere avoids that high frequency ultra-violet rays reach the ground.

Pure ozone is not usually produced, but such as ozonized oxygen. That is achieved by passing oxygen or air through an electric effluvium resulting from the gas ionization. This effect is obtained with ozonizers or ozone generators.