Ozone generators are often used in hotel rooms, cars and private homes to get rid of the smell of cigarette smoke. A recent Los Angeles Times report indicates that ozone systems designed for odor control can be harmful. Researchers at the Univeristy of California’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) have found that ozone combines with nicotine and other components of cigarette smoke to produce chemicals that are a greater asthma hazard than the original smoke.
The LBLN researchers reported in the journal Atmospheric Environment that the chemicals reacted to form the ultrafine aerosols — smaller than those generated by smoking itself, and thus able to penetrate more deeply into the lungs. They also generated toxic compounds with a strong potential to stimualte asthma.
LBNL reported earlier this year that smoking can deposit nicotine and other products on furniture and other surfaces, where it can be released over long periods of time. This so-called thirdhand smoke constitutes a previously unsuspected source of exposure to carcinogenic and asthma-inducing chemicals. Attempting to removethe residue with ozone — which was thought to react with the chemicals and destroy them — can apparently create even more hazardous compounds.
The study was funded by the Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program of the University of California Office of the President.