What is ozone?
Ozone is a naturally produced chemical and is generated at every occurrence of a lightning strike during a thunderstorm. It is nature’s way of cleaning the air and water, removing germs and other contaminants and ensures that pollutants do not reach excessive levels. You may notice the fresh, clean smell immediately after a thunderstorm- that is the effect of ozone produced. Ozone is also produced as a result of the sun’s ultra-violet rays striking our upper atmosphere producing the ozone layer. This layer acts as a shield, protecting us from harmful ultra-violet radiation.
How is ozone created?
Ozone (O3) is made up of three atoms of oxygen instead of oxygen(O2) which is made of two atoms of oxygen. When subjected to an electrical charge – either from lightning, ultra-violet radiation from the sun or from a deliberate charge – standard oxygen molecules are broken apart into two individual oxygen atoms and combine to form ozone (O3).
Why is ozone an effective sterilizer?
Ozone is made up of three atoms of oxygen and the molecular structure is very unstable.The third atom of oxygen looks for any opportunity to leave the other two atoms. This can be accomplished by joining other molecules to form oxygen 2O3 = 3O2 or releasing the extra oxygen atom. The released oxygen atom attacks bacteria, fungi and other organic matter. This is why ozone has a short half-life and will revert back to oxygen in a short time. When the third atom of oxygen joins bacteria, moulds, viruses and other pathogens it oxidizes the cell’s membrane destroying it. Ozone is 51 times more powerful than chlorine, 3,000 times more effective and leaves no residue!
Why aren’t more people using ozone?
Due to its limited life ozone must be produced at the point of use. Traditionally, ozone generators have been complicated, expensive devices that were costly to purchase an operate. OPURA™ is a revolutionary device that extracts ozone from air, monitors and maintains safe and effective levels, and dissolves the generated ozone into tap water. Ozone has been approved for direct food contact by the U.S. FDA since June 2001 (CITE: 21CFR173.368). Many countries approve the use dissolved ozone extensively as a cleaner/sanitizer and cities such as Los Angeles and others around the world use ozone every day to purify drinking water.