Ozone Purification
Why Ozone Purification? The Maytronics Ozone Series is a secondary sanitation system. It breaks down the spent chlorine in the water – also known as Chloramines; and frees the chlorine in the water to concentrate on being a sanitiser. The addition of Ozone to the water acts as both a neutraliser and oxidiser, allowing the chlorine to be free to kill microorganisms and bacteria.
WHAT IS OZONE PURIFICATION?
Ozone has been used in Europe for many years to treat public water supplies as well as pools and spas. It is a modified highly reactive form of oxygen (chemical formula O3). It is one of the strongest oxidizers and disinfectants available. It is stronger than chlorine, bromine and hydrogen peroxide. Ozone kills E. Coli (commonly used to measure the effectiveness of sanitizers) 25 times more powerfully than hypochlorous acid (chlorine) and about 500 times faster.
Ozone is produced naturally in the earth’s upper atmosphere in two ways. When the sun’s ultraviolet rays split the oxygen molecule (O2), one individual oxygen atom attaches itself to a molecule to form ozone (O3). Ozone is also formed when an electrical discharge (like lightning) passes through oxygen.
Ozone produces short-lived ‘free radicals’ which react very quickly and then revert to oxygen.
There are two main methods of producing ozone; Corona Discharge and Ultraviolet Radiation. In the Corona Discharge method, air is passed through an electrically charged chamber, where a miniature ‘lightning storm’ produces ozone from available oxygen. Corona Discharge systems produce substantially higher concentrations of ozone than the UV system and are more commonly the preferred system for larger pools.
In the Ultraviolet Radiation method air is passed close to one or more ultraviolet lamps where UV rays excite oxygen which then forms ozone. The concentration of ozone produced in this process is quite low. As a result UV systems are usually only used on spas.
An ozone generator in combination with chlorine or bromine reduces the chlorine or bromine requirement by up to 95%. Chlorine or bromine is still required to kill the bacteria when the ozone system is not operating (normal filtration cycle) and must still be measured and tested for. Ozone only lasts between 20 seconds and 6 minutes in most spas and pools. Ozone will also oxidize some minerals dissolved in the pool water, such as iron which then forms a cloudy precipitate which the filter will remove.
Once the ozone has done its job, it reverts back to oxygen which makes the water look, feel, and even taste better.
HOW DOES OZONE PURIFICATION WORK?
Other benefits of Ozone Swim Purification Include:
Use less chemicals for a cleaner pool
Energy-efficient & effective
Reduce chlorine exposure
Helps to eliminate skin and eye irritations commonly caused by chlorine
Using Ozone Swim significantly reduces the need for added chlorine in the pool, therefore reducing exposure when swimming, leaving you with softer, clear water without the irritations from high amounts of added chlorine.
Suitable to work alongside a variety of filtration systems. Contact your local Poolwerx for more details.
