What Is "Smog"?
Smog is chemical mixture of gases that commonly forms a
brownish-yellow haze in the air, primarily over urban areas. Components of smog include
ground-level ozone, nitrogen oxides (NOx), volatile organic compounds (VOC), sulfur
dioxide, acidic aerosols and gases, and particulate matter. These gases result from a
reaction between certain airborne pollutants and strong sunlight. Smog is most prevalent
in the summer months, when there is the most sunlight and temperatures are the highest.
Smog poses a significant threat to animal, plant, and human life in fact, thousands die
every year as a result of this pollution.
IS OZONE REALLY THE CULPRIT?
The so-called "ground level ozone"
(called this to differentiate it from ozone in the upper atmosphere - the "ozone
layer") that is said to be the "main culprit" in smog is really a
collection hydrocarbons - COČ CO, and SOČ - that react with UV rays from the sun
to form nitric oxides (NOX), halogenated by-products,
and lead and sulfur compounds. These composites do indeed cause offensive odors, aggravate
respiratory problems and burn eyes. But it is NOT the ozone that is the true
villain. Ozone naturally forms not as a true component of smog but, more
accurately, as nature's way of eliminating it. As the level of VOCs and particulate rises
in the air, the ozone level rises as Nature herself tries to clean up man's mess!
If you remove the manmade components of smog - the VOCs and
industrial particulates - then you simply have a natural process where the ozone and
nitrogen dioxide are normalized to safe and healthy levels. When you add a large amount of
man-made hydrocarbons to the equation, then the amounts of nitrogen dioxide and ozone are
artificially increased.
The main reason that ozone gets the label of "Public
Enemy Number One" is that while man-made hydrocarbons are very complex and as
such quite difficult to measure, ozone is very easy to accurately measure.
Consequently, ozone has long been used as an indicator for the severity or
presence of smog because as the levels of the true components of smog rise, so does the
level of ozone.
By conveniently placing the onus on ozone, government and
industry are effectively relieved of the responsibility for the millions of pounds of
toxins released into the air every year. Rather than taking steps to control the real
culprit, we are actually allowing our government to shoot the messenger - good guy ozone.
THE REAL CULPRIT
Ozone's beneficial role in smog reduction is its ability to
break down and oxidize hydrocarbons and particulates in the air. One of the most powerful
oxidants known, ozone actually burns (through a microscopic chemical reaction akin to an
explosion) and destroys particulate with which it comes in contact. Ozone is unstable and
highly reactive, and as such it readily seeks out molecules of particulate and gas with
which to chemically react in an effort to break up the oxygen triplet - O3 - and return to its natural state: O2,
or oxygen.
However, in the process of breaking down man-made
hydrocarbons in particular, the result is the production of elements that combine to
produce additional ozone and nitrogen dioxide, above and beyond what is produced
naturally. Even though hydrocarbons are quickly being broken down by the ozone, the sheer
volume of these pollutants that is produced by our highly-industrialized society is almost
insurmountable. In our cities and industrial areas, where there is an extremely high level
of hydrocarbons in the air, nature simply cannot keep up without overcompensating.
By itself, ozone is a natural purification agent used in a
variety of ways for this purpose both by nature and by humans. At reasonable levels it is
not at all unhealthy, and due to ozone's reactive and unstable nature it is very, very
rare for ozone levels to become excessive under natural or normal circumstances.
Conversely, man-made hydrocarbons are completely unhealthy at any level and under any
circumstance. Common sense dictates that black, sooty smoke coming from an automobile
exhaust or smokestack can only be harmful to your health.
Hydrocarbons do occur naturally in the air, as does the ozone
that helps to break them down without reaching dangerous or unnatural concentrations. When
excessive amounts of hydrocarbons are produced, largely man-made, you will get high ozone
concentrations as a natural reaction to an unnatural situation. Consider this - Rarely do
less-populated areas experience smog and ozone problems, even though ozone is naturally
produced the same way and in similar quantities in big and small cities alike.
Ozone-producing air purifiers -
choosing a safe one
Modern, "air-tight" construction methods that began
in the energy-conscious 1970s, combined with misinformation about ozone safety perpetuated
by well-meaning public health agencies, has resulted in an unfortunate lack of ozone in
most indoor environments. The reason this is so unfortunate is because in truth ozone is
an effective, natural air purification agent which, when properly produced by a
high-quality air cleaning system, can alleviate a wide range of health problems such as
allergies, asthma, sinus problems, and chemical exposure.
The EPA has stated in no uncertain terms that indoor air
pollution is the nation's number one environmental health problem - and it is a far more
significant risk to human health than even the worst outdoor air pollution. On that
point, the EPA is absolutely correct. Because it is the high hydrocarbon concentration
that is a component of smog conditions that makes the ground ozone level artificially
high, this is not a factor indoors. Even if you have many other kinds of pollutants in
your home (and you do), hydrocarbons are the only contaminant will cause ozone levels to
rise above safe levels. The scientific community is still not sure exactly why this
happens; they only know that it does happen.
It should be clear that ozone is not the culprit of our
pollution problems. Ozone has been used for half a century as a purifying agent for a
variety of applications - water treatment and purification, food preservation, cancer and
HIV treatment, and odor removal.
Most ozone air purifiers are designed to produce an ozone
concentration of about .04 ppm (parts per million) when operated according to
instructions, which is within all standards (including OSHA and the FDA). Fortunately,
ozone is a self-policing element, since it's odor becomes obnoxious to most people well
before it can reach more concentrated than necessary for good cleaning, as opposed to
the refreshing and purified smell it gives off when occurring at safe and healthy levels.
