What is a Hydroxyl Radical?
The Hydroxyl radical is often referred to as the “detergent” of the troposphere because it reacts with many pollutants, decomposing them through “cracking“. Cracking is a term used to describe the reaction of the OH to other containments. Or more specifically, outside the field of petroleum chemistry, the term “cracking” is used to describe any type of splitting of molecules under the influence of heat, catalysts and solvents.
How does the OH work? Is this a new idea?
Well no, it’s not new, but the application and methods we can use are new. We can now use variation of the UV lamp with additional catalytic materials and of course new IoT (Internet of Things) technology to manage and monitor these processes in the home and office.
Hydroxyl radicals are produced during UV-light dissociation of H2O2 (first suggested in 1879) and likely in Fenton chemistry, where trace amounts of reduced transition metals catalyse peroxide-mediated oxidations of organic compounds.
Are there different type or applications of the OH Radical, I see some called “restoration”?
Yes, there are very different applications, the use of “Restoration Hydroxyls” is where very heavy loads of OH are pumped into a space with the intention to remove, by brute force, any forms of VOC and unwanted materials. Of course, the area must be vacated during this complete process.
The systems that QiTek use are specifically designed to be low level output, and with the additional Sensors sets we can monitor in real time and report to the AWS cloud. So that any changes in the air quality and the levels of things like VOC and CO2 can be managed properly.
Where can I read more?
By all means refer to the various Wiki pages, keeping in mind there are a complex set of relationships and applications. If you need more complex answers, we suggest you begin here, at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydroxyl_radical
