Question:

What are the safety issues associated with ozone exposure in a laboratory setting? My main concern is personnel health effects. I've heard that ozone affects mucous membranes and can cause minor discomfort, but are there more serious health effects?

My ozone exposure is from operating a Tesla coil in room air. Should I be concerned about breathing the ozone from this for extended periods (intermittent exposure for up to 30-60 minutes, possibly several times per day)?

Answer:

=== Thank you for your question(s).

=== There is an evidence supporting the view that repeated or the long term accumulative exposure to ozone concentrations in the air in excess to national standards (0.05 and 0.1 ppm) can (and very likely will) have the negative / irritation / damaging effects on the mucous membranes.

=== The real question you should focus your attention on first is how much ozone is created and present in the air during the tests you conduct with Tesla Coil(s). You may be interested to know that the Ozone Test Strips suitable for detection of ozone in air are available from our company and they are relatively inexpensive and they are very easy to use. Various electronic ozone monitors are available as well, but their cost is much higher than the cost of ozone Test Strips.

=== What is important to understand is the fact, that when ozone is produced from air, the production of ozone is accompanied with by-production of NO₂(toxic). Therefore, sometimes the discomfort is associated with the exposure to NO₂, rather then exposure to ozone.

=== In any case, an efficient ventilation is always a good idea...if it is possible. In many buildings the improvements in terms of ventilation unfortunately can not be done. In situations like that many people opt for air filters which utilize carbon filters. The selection of desktop air filtration units is relatively good and their cost went down in last a few years due to their introduction to residential market. Naturally, the correct size/flow capacity filter must be selected in order to be effective.

=== I hope this helps,

=== Take Care

=== The OzoneLab™ Team