Ozone Free

Why iXi Water is Ozone Free

Over the last few decades, ozone has become quite popular as a drinking water treatment. It is easy and inexpensive to generate, and is not only a disinfectant, but also known to make water appear more sparkling and fresh. It’s a cheap-and-nasty way for the industry to avoid the growth of algae and biofilm, but that’s not the end of the story. 

So why is iXi Water so strongly opposed to adding ozone to drinking water? It’s all about your health, for reasons hidden deep in the intricacies of water chemistry. First, a superficial explanation:- 

Ozone is the most aggressive oxidant in nature. The ozone molecule consists of 3 oxygen atoms (O3) and is very unstable. It splits up into stable oxygen (O2) and a single, very reactive oxygen atom. This oxygen atom will react aggressively with any other substance it may encounter. This is exactly why ozone is an effective disinfectant – it reacts so violently with bacteria that it kills them. 

Ozone has important functions in the upper atmosphere and possibly in natural surface waters (the sun’s rays make ozone form in small quantities). But in pure water, ozone breaks down and forms a range of aggressive oxidizers, of which the hydroxyl radical (OH•) is the most dangerous. These radicals will not only destroy bacteria, but harm healthy cells in the body and also the good flora in your stomach lining. They are carcinogenic and should be avoided as far as possible. You don’t want to expose yourself to the long-term effects of consuming them. 

Let’s now dig a bit deeper into the latest water chemistry research:- The very unstable O3 molecule resonates between the following structures:- 

Hydration
Ozone+Testing+copy
Ozone decomposes into oxygen:-
 
2O3 ↔ 3O2
O-O-O + O-O-O = O-O + O-O + O-O
 
But in pure water, as produced by Reverse Osmosis, it’s not that simple.
 

O3 + H20 ↔ ?

Since water dissolves ozone around 10 times more than it does oxygen, a series of complex reactions occur:- 

    O3 + OH– → HO2 + O2–

             HO2 ↔ H+ + O2–

     O3 + O2– → O3– + O2

     H++ O3–  ↔ HO3

            HO3 → HO– + O2

   HO++ O3  → HO4

            HO4 → HO2 + O2

HO4 + HO4  → H2O2+ 2O3

HO4 + HO4  → H2O2 + O3 + O2

   O3 + OH– → HO2– + O2

 HO2– + O3  → HO2 + O3–

HO2 + OH– ↔ H2O + O2–

    O3 + O2– → O3– + O2

  H2O + O3– → OH + O2 + OH

   OH– + O3– → O2– + HO2

    HO + O3– → O3 + OH–

   OH– + O3  → HO2  + O2    

Note that while some stable oxygen forms, the majority of those oxygen species formed are highly reactive (also called radical). The most dangerous ones are:- – the hydroxyl radical OH• (the strongest oxidizer known in nature)
 
– hydroperoxide radical HO2
– superoxide radical ion O2–
– ozonide radical ion O3
 

So in order to provide healthy drinking water, iXi Water is strongly opposed to the use of ozone in preparing it. We have taken a range of innovative measures to ensure that iXi water remains chemically and biologically pure without the use of disinfectants.

Ozone and Half Life

Proponents of ozone argue that ozone puts oxygen in water and has a half-life of around 20 minutes in water, which implies that it dissipates quite quickly and therefore does not pose a threat to the consumer. This is a half-truth and misleading: when ozone decomposes, it forms those radical oxygen species, which are as reactive as the ozone itself. So the problem of aggressive oxidizers doesn’t go away, but only converts from one form to another.

Water-Pouring

Ozone Therapy

Ozone therapies remain highly controversial and are not endorsed by mainstream medicine. There seems to be evidence though that ozone can be used for the treatment of various serious diseases such as cancer and AIDS. This may create the impression that ozone is healthy. This however is not true. Several side effects of ozone therapy have been reported, including death. It remains an aggressive, toxic molecule that has the ability to oxidise organic compounds and may only be beneficial for the treatment of specific diseases, if expertly administered. To the contrary, ozone in drinking water is harmful.