Ozone VS UV
| Items | Ozone | UV | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working Principle | The addition of the third oxygen atom makes ozone a powerful oxidant. Ozone can kill harmful microorganisms through rupturing the cell membrane. | UVC, which has bactericidal effect, can inactivate harmful microorganisms by disrupting and damaging their DNA structures and inhibiting their reproductive capacity. | |
| Broad-spectrum | Ozone has a wide sterilization range. It belongs to the lysozyme operation. Ozone can kill almost all bacteria, viruses as well as spores, fungi, mold, protozoa and other resistant microorganisms. | UV sterilization has a narrower sterilization range. It belongs to the sterilization level, which cannot completely kill all bacteria, viruses, protozoa and fungi. Nor can it kill spores of bacteria and virus. | |
| Effective on Cryptosporidia? | Yes. Ozone kills cryptosporidia. | Yes. UV inactivates cryptosporidia. | |
| Algae and Biofilms | When used for water treatment, ozone is effective in removing algae and biofilms from water. | UV cannot remove algae and biofilms from the water. | |
| Micro-flocculation | Ozone can have a micro-flocculation effect for organic matters in wastewater, which helps the filtration and removal of the organic matters. | UV has no micro-flocculation effect for organic matters in wastewater. | |
| Odor Removal | By reacting with odor molecules, ozone can change their chemical properties to achieve the odor removal purpose. | UV cannot achieve any odor removal purpose. | |
| Decolorizing | The strong oxidizing property of ozone can be used to decolorize organic dyes and treat dyeing wastewater, thus avoiding or reducing their pollution to surface water and groundwater. | UV has no decolorization effect on any kind of wastewater. | |
| Validity for Compounds | Ozone can achieve the oxidation and removal of compounds in wastewater. | UV has no effect on compounds in the wastewater. | |
| Effect on Humic and Fulvic Acids | Ozone can destroy humic and fulvic acids. | UV has no effect on humic and fulvic acids. | |
| Working Time Required | Depending on how polluted the environment is, ozone can realize the sterilization in a matter of seconds, which is thousands of times faster than any currently known conventional methods. For air and surface sterilization: Ozone can achieve the sterilization at the moment of contact with harmful microorganisms. For water treatment: After dissolved into water, ozone can be effective immediately to achieve the elimination of harmful microorganisms. | The time required for UV sterilization depends on the size of the room. After the treatment, the room still need to be left idle for a certain period of time before re-entering. | |
| Dead Corner Problem | There is no dead corner problem in ozone sterilization. When used for air and surface sterilization, ozone gas can be evenly dispersed after it is generated. Ozone can go anywhere the air can go. | UV travels in a straight line, with dead corners formed when it is blocked. So, a thorough sterilization cannot easily be achieved. | |
| Residue Problem | There will be no harmful residues produced after an ozone treatment. The excessive ozone can be quickly degraded into oxygen. | Nitrates are widely found in the air, fruits and vegetables, cheese products, and preserved meat products. When nitrates are exposed to UV radiation, nitrite, a carcinogenic pollutant, can be formed. Therefore, attention should be paid when UV sterilization is used in food processing industry. | |
| Action Modes for Water Treatment | Ozone functions by being dissolved into the water to be treated. | UV affects the water only as it passes through a UV chamber. | |
| Scale Problem | There will be no scale produced in or after an ozone water treatment. | If the hardness of water is too high, it is easy to cause the formation of scale in a UV water treatment process. | |
| Turbidity of Water | The turbidity of water and the presence of suspended particles in water have no effect in an ozone water treatment process. Ozone functions well in cloudy water. Its flocculation effect can help in water purification. | Cloudy water with suspended particles can reduce the penetration of UV in the water, thus affecting the sterilization effect. Only effective in clear water. Turbidity in the water can absorb UV radiation and affect the effect. | |
| For Swimming Pools and SPAs | Prevent the Breeding and Development of Microorganisms | Yes, including chlorine-resistant microorganisms. | Yes. |
| Destroy Chloramines and Improve Chlorination of Water | Yes. Ozone can oxidize and eliminate the organic and inorganic substances that produce chloramine. | No. UV can only break down chloramines that have been previously formed. | |
| Increases Water Clarity | Yes. Ozone can improve water clarity by its flocculation effect. | Yes. UV can improve water clarity by decomposing chloramine. | |
| Reduce Overall Chlorine Content | Yes. | Yes. | |
| Reduce the Use of Chemical Disinfection Products | Yes. | Yes. | |
| Elimination of By-products after Water Chlorination | Yes. | Yes. | |
| Better Improve Water Quality than Residual Sanitizers | Yes. | Yes. | |
| A strong oxidant used in American professional swimming pools | Yes. | No. | |
| Claimed Effective to Inactivate Giardia Cysts & Cryptosporidium Oocysts by WHO | Yes. | Yes. | |
| Applicable in Commercial Swimming Pools and SPAs | Yes. | Yes. | |
| Temperature and Humidity Requirements | Ozone has good low-temperature sterilization effect, which is suitable for applications that cannot use high-temperature sterilization methods. And ozone's bactericidal effect will improve when environment humidity increases. | Susceptible to humidity and dust, UV sterilization is unstable. The bactericidal effect will decrease rapidly with the increase of environmental humidity. | |
| Duration of Bactericidal Effect | Ozone can not only achieve a thorough sterilization, but also capable of maintaining the effect for a longer period of time. Ozone can inhibit the rapid breeding of microorganisms in a short period of time. | The sterilization effect after a UV treatment can only be maintained shortly. Harmful microorganisms can easily reproduce themselves in a short period of time. | |
| Application Range | Ozone can be widely applied in air and surface sterilization, odor removal, wastewater decolorization, deodorization, detoxification, flocculation and many other applications. | UV can also be used in air and surface sterilization and water treatment applications. | |
| Replacement of Consumables | No replacement of consumables in ozone cells. Only an annual periodic cleaning is required. No hazardous components. | UV lamps should be replaced on a quarterly or yearly basis. Since UV lams are hazardous waste. They need to be treated according to standard procedures. | |
| Maintenance Costs | Ozone can be generated on site by ozone generating equipment. Its maintenance mainly involves the replacement and maintenance of consumables like ozone plates and ozone tubes. It has a lower maintenance costs. | The maintenance cost in UV sterilization mainly includes the replacement of UV lamps after a long term use, which does not cost too much when its service life is considered. | |