Ozone Stratospheric Ozone Ozone As A Pollutant Use In Industry

Ozone is a highly corrosive poisonous substance and a common pollutant. It has a sharp, pungent odor. It is present in low concentrations throughout the Earth's atmosphere. It is also formed from O₂ by electrical discharges, e.g., lightning, and by action of high energy electromagnetic radiation. Some electrical equipment generates levels of ozone that a human can easily smell; this is especially true if there is a spark gap or a very high voltage.

The highest levels of ozone in the atmosphere are in the stratosphere, in a region also known as the ozone layer. Here it filters out much ultravioletNote: Ultraviolet is also the name of a 1998 UK television miniseries about vampires. Ultraviolet UV radiation is electromagnetic radiation of a wavelength shorter than that of visible light, but longer than that of soft X-rays. It can be subdivided into light from the SunThe Sun (also called Sol is the star in our solar system. Planet Earth orbits the Sun. Other bodies that orbit the Sun include other planets, asteroids, meteoroids, comets and dust. Not all objects passing through the solar system have been orbitally capt that would be harmful to most forms of lifeAlternate uses: see Life (disambiguation) and Living (disambiguation Life is a multi-faceted concept with no simple definition; this article is confined to the primary meanings in biology; articles on life in other senses are included in the article life. The standard way to express ozone amounts in the atmosphere is by using Dobson unitDobson units (DU) are the standard way to express ozone amounts in the atmosphere. One DU is 2. 7 x 1016 (10 to the 16th power) ozone molecules per square centimetre. One Dobson unit refers to a layer of ozone that would be 0. 01 mm thick under standard ts. Ozone used in industry is measured in ppmParts per million ppm is a measure of concentration that is used where low levels of concentration are significant. The ppm value is equivalent to the absolute fractional amount multiplied by one million (106). Illustrations of one part per million The me ( OSHA exposure limits for example), and percent weight.

Ozone was discovered by Christian Friedrich Schonbein in 18401840 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). Events January 3 One of the predecessor papers to the Herald Sun of Melbourne, Australia, The Port Phillip Herald is founded by George Cavanaugh. January 10 Uniform penny postage.

1 Stratospheric ozone

Ozone in the earth's atmosphere is generally created by ultraviolet light which breaks apart O₂ molecules, creating atomic oxygen. The atomic oxygen then combines with an unbroken molecule, to create O₃. Sometimes the individual oxygen atoms will combine with N₂ to create a nitrogen oxide; which, when affected by visible light, may create ozone.

When ultraviolet light hits ozone it splits into a molecule of O₂ and an atom of atomic oxygen, a continuing process called the ozone-oxygen cycle. This cycle can be disrupted by the presence of atomic chlorine, fluorine or bromine in the atmosphere; these elements are found in certain stable compounds, especially chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) which may find their way to the stratosphere and there be liberated by the action of ultraviolet light on them. The NOx cycle for the formation of ozone can also be broken by the presence of atmospheric water, reducing NOx to a more stable form.

2 Ozone as a pollutant

See Tropospheric Ozone.

3 Use in industry

Ozone can be used for bleaching substances and for killing bacteria. Many municipal drinking water systems kill bacteria with ozone instead of the more common chlorine. Ozone does not form organochlorine compounds, but it also does not remain in the water after treatment, so some systems introduce a small amount of chlorine to prevent bacterial growth in the pipes.

Industrially, ozone is used to:

disinfect water before it is bottled,
chemically attack contaminants in water ( iron, arsenic, hydrogen sulfide, nitrites, and complex organics lumped together as "color"),
provide an aid to flocculation (a process of agglomeration of molecules, which aids in filtration... this is where the iron and arsenic get removed),
clean and bleach fabrics (the latter use is patented),
assist in processing plastics to allow adhesion of inks,
age rubber samples to determine the useful life of a batch of rubber.

4 Use in medicine

Ozone, along with hypochlorite ions, is naturally produced by white blood cells and the roots of marigolds as a means of destroying foreign bodies. When ozone breaks down it gives rise to oxygen free radicals, which are highly reactive and damage or destroy most organic molecules.

Ozone has a number of medical uses. It can be used to affect the body's antioxidant-prooxidant balance, since the body usually reacts to its presence by producing antioxidant enzymes.

Ozone therapy has blossomed into a thriving field of alternative medicine, and there are a host of claimed applications above and beyond what has actually been verified by studies. Ozone treatments are dangerous, however, since ozone is highly corrosive.

In the USA ozone therapy is illegal, as the FDA has not approved its use on humans. At least one death has been attributed to application of ozone through insufflation in the USA. "Air cleaners" which produce "activated oxygen", i.e. ozone, are often sold in the US nonetheless.

Ozone has been found to convert cholesterol in the blood stream to plaque (which causes hardening and narrowing of arteries). This cholesterol product has also been implicated in Alzheimer's disease, suggesting a link between the inflammatory response associated with head injury and Alzheimer's.

Ozone has been studied extensively, and found to be carcinogenic to some animals (and not others), and a mutagen to some bacteria.

5 See also

6 External links

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