5 reasons that you should be using Chlorine Dioxide

5 reasons that you should be using Chlorine Dioxide

Chlorine dioxide is currently under EPA review as a surface sanitizer for E. coli O157:H7 and drug-resistant Salmonella.


1. Chlorine dioxide has 2.6 times the oxidizing power of waterborne chlorine (from bleach), giving it a wide spectrum of sanitizing uses and making it extraordinarily effective against a host of bugs. Studies have shown that it produces as high as a 6-log reduction. A process that achieves a "6-log reduction" (10−6) will theoretically reduce an initial population of one million organisms to very close to zero.


2. Chlorine dioxide has a much wider pH spectrum than chlorine, making it more versatile and forgiving in a variety of application situations. Unlike chlorine, chlorine dioxide remains a true gas dissolved in solution. The lack of any significant reaction of chlorine dioxide with water is partly responsible for its ability to retain its biocidal effectiveness over a wide pH range. It also has limited reactions with organics, indicating that much more of the chlorine dioxide added to a system is available as a biocidal agent, and is not consumed to the degree that chlorine would be under the same circumstances. In addition, chlorine will react with, and be consumed by ammonia or any amine, while chlorine dioxide reacts very slowly with secondary amines, and sparingly with primary amines or ammonia.


3. Chlorine dioxide is registered with EPA (Registration No. 74986-1), and is considered an excellent bactericide, fungicide and antimicrobial agent. It has passed the EPA’s stringent DIS/TISS guidelines for use as a disinfectant and as a food-contact surface sanitizer.


4. The FDA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) have approved stabilized sodium chlorite (a precursor) and chlorine dioxide in food processing plants for sanitizing and controlling bacteria and mold.


5. Chlorine dioxide is currently under EPA review as a surface sanitizer for E. coli O157:H7 and drug-resistant Salmonella. It is also currently under EPA review as a viricide for HIV and Hepatitis A and for use as a fungicide, viricide, and algaecide.