From: Geoff Ruth (gruth@leadershiphigh.org)
Date: Fri Sep 17 2004 - 21:33:23 PDT
Message-Id: <p06110432bd7168f9661a@[192.168.123.175]> Date: Fri, 17 Sep 2004 21:33:23 -0700 From: Geoff Ruth <gruth@leadershiphigh.org> Subject: Re: pinhole Bleach like oder and ionic air purifiers
OK, I'll try to respond to the possessed Ionic Breeze air purifier.
In my chem classes, we recently did a lab where we added nitric acid
to copper. Among the products are nitrogen dioxide (NO2). Students
unanimously identified the smell of NO2 as chlorine bleach.
So perhaps you're smelling NO2 in the air when the air quality gets
worse. I have no clear idea why the smell would become more
noticeable when you run an air purifier. Maybe the NO2 molecules
become charged (turn into nitrite ions?), which makes them more able
to dissolve in the nose's mucus and thereby be better sensed in
olfactory pits?
Also, I don't think ozone is odorless. My memory both from reading &
BART stations is that it has a sharp, metallic-y smell. But I don't
remember it smelling at all like bleach.
- Geoff Ruth
>OK folks here is one for you.
>
>
>I have an Ionic Breeze air purifier.
>
>On smoggy days, when air quality index is 30 and above, the room it
>is in gets bleach like smell so I don't run it on those days.
>
>
>This does not happen on days when the index is lower.
>
>
>Any idea what this may be?
>
>
>Some web sites say it is ozone but ozone is odorless.
>
>
>Perhaps some other chemical reaction.
>
>
>BTW on low index days I run the IB all day with no oder. On 30+ days
>it takes a few minutes for the oder to be noticeable.
>
>And I don't have a large sample of data so this could all be based
>on insufficient data.
>
>
>
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