A new study has put a chemical creation on a solid footing.
The surprising discovery that hydrogen peroxide forms spontaneously in tiny droplets of ordinary, benign water was made back in 2019. Researchers want to understand how the reaction occurs, as well as explore potential applications, such as eco-friendlier cleaning methods.
A phenomenon known as contact electrification happens when sprayed droplets of water hit a solid surface The electric charge can jump between the two materials. H 2 O 2 can be formed by pairs of hydroxyl radicals and the chemical formula OH.
In humid environments, this process occurs when water touches particles of soil and fine particles in the atmosphere. Water can transform into small amounts of reactive oxygen species, such as hydrogen peroxide, wherever microdroplets naturally form, bolstering results from a 2020 study.
The senior author of the study, Richard Zare, is a professor of chemistry in the school. hydrogen peroxide is a universal phenomenon at water-solid interface.
The work was led by Zare and he collaborated with researchers from two universities in China. The study was published in the national academy of sciences
The hydrogen peroxide's beginnings are discussed.
The researchers built a glass apparatus that could be used to inject water. A water-solid boundary was created by the channels. The researchers perfused the water with a fluorescent dye. The experiment showed the presence of the harsh chemical in the glass channel, but not in a bulk sample of water. The hydrogen peroxide formed quickly at the edge of the water and the solid.
The researchers wanted to know if the hydrogen peroxide came from a reaction with the glass or the water. Oxygen-18 or 18 O is a heavier version of oxygen and can be found in the treated channels.
Some of the debate that has arisen in the scientific community since the discovery of hydrogen peroxide in water microdroplets three years ago has been helped by the new findings. The major contributions of hydrogen peroxide production via chemical interactions with the gas ozone, O 3 and a process called cavitation have been emphasized in other studies. Zare pointed out that both of those processes produce hydrogen peroxide.
"All of these processes contribute to hydrogen peroxide production, but the present work confirms that this production is alsoIntrinsic to the way microdroplets are made and interact with solid surfaces through contact electrification," said Zare.
The tables are turned on seasonal respiratory infections.
Understanding how and in what situations water can transform into reactive oxygen species, such as hydrogen peroxide, has a host of real world insights and applications. Understanding the formation of hydroxyl radicals and hydrogen peroxide as an overlooked contributor to the well-known seasonality of many viral respiratory diseases, including colds, flus, and likely COVID-19 once the disease becomes fully endemic is among the most compelling.
When people who are sick cough, sneeze, sing, or even just talk in the air, it's a sign that they have a respiratory disease. People spend more time indoors and in close proximity during the cold weather season, which leads to more infections in winter and less in summer. Between work, school, and sleeping at night, people end up spending the same amount of time indoors in the summer as they do in the winter. According to the new study, the key variable at work is the amount of water in the air. In the summer, the relative levels of indoor humidity are tied to the relative humidity in the warm air outside. In winter, when the air inside buildings is warm, the droplets evaporate before the reactive oxygen species can act as a disinfectant.
There is a chemical basis to explain why there is seasonality to respiratory diseases. Zare said that future research should look at any links between indoor humidity levels and the spread of infectious diseases. Adding humidifiers to heating, ventilating, and cooling systems could help reduce disease transmission.
Taking a fresh approach to sterilizing surfaces is just one of the practical consequences of this work. It shows us that we know a lot about water, one of the most commonly encountered substances.
Zare is a member of several other organizations.
More information: Bolei Chen et al, Water–solid contact electrification causes hydrogen peroxide production from hydroxyl radical recombination in sprayed microdroplets, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2022). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2209056119 Journal information: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
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