Disinfecting with Hypochlorous Acid
Hypochlorous Acid is a primary active ingredient in eWater, providing highly effective antimicrobial efficacy. This weak acid is also produced naturally by our white blood cells to fight infection and can be produced with only salt, water and electricity. Simple and Effective.
eWater is produced by electrolysis technology, with the simple ingredients of only salt, water and electricity. As a solution, eWater Sanitiser contains a high concentration of Hypochlorous Acid, a key active ingredient that is well recognized for its disinfectant properties.
What is Hypochlorous Acid?
Hypochlorous Acid (HCIO) is a weak acid that is formed when elemental Chlorine is dissolved in water and maintained within a defined pH range (between 3-6.5pH). Outside of this range HCIO will partially dissociates, forming hypochlorites (CIO-).
HCIO is widely recognised as the most effective antimicrobial in the chlorine family.
It is also naturally produced by our neutrophils, or white blood cells to fight microbial infection and inflammation. Uniquely this makes HCIO one of the only non-toxic disinfection agents.
Why isn’t HOCI used everywhere?
HCIO solutions have been used for over 100 years and were used during the world wars for disinfecting medical equipment and dressing wounds.
The overwhelming impediment to its widespread use has been a lack of shelf stability. HCIO is a highly reactive ROS (Reactive Oxygen Species). This means it reacts very easily and will quickly turn back into saltwater.
Until recently, HCIO solutions would only remain stable for about 90 minutes before turning back into saltwater.
eWater Hygiene Systems use a water electrolysis method for generating HCIO that generates a solution that remains stable for an extended period of time enabling it to be packaged and distributed.
How does HCIO work as an antimicrobial in eWater?
eWater Sanitiser uses a technology called water electrolysis to generate a chemically activated solution containing a high concentration of HCIO with a high oxidising reduction potential (+800 mV to +1,200 mV). These characteristics are capable of killing a wide range of both bacterial and viral microorganisms.
HCIO has a relatively low molecular weight it is better able than the other disinfectants to penetrate the cell walls. It also reacts more rapidly than other chlorine-based disinfectants to oxidation reactions with organic matter, i.e. the critical components of microbial cells.
When immersed in eWater, microorganisms are exposed to HCIO and will sequester electrons with high efficiency from microbial structural compounds and cause the rupturing of biochemical bonds and subsequent loss of function.
Research indicates that eWater Sanitiser kills viruses by the inactivating surface proteins, destroying the virus envelope, inactivating of key enzymes and destroying viral RNA.
This gives eWater Sanitiser a broad biocidal effect against bacteria, viruses, fungi, spores and biofilms.
If HCIO is in bleach, how is eWater different?
These two chemical solutions are very different but share an active ingredient.
Lets talk about Bleach -
Sodium Hypochlorite (NaOCI), commonly known as bleach is widely recommended as an effective environmental disinfection chemical around the world, due to its low cost and wide distribution.
It has a high pH (11+) and is produced at a high concentration in order to generate capable disinfection efficacy.
When bleach is mixed with water, the pH is lowered (made acidic) converting a small percentage of the hypochlorite ion into hypochlorous acid. The hypochlorite ion is a relatively poor disinfectant relative to hypochlorous acid and due to this a high concentration of bleach is required to disinfect.
Bleach is a hazardous chemical that can cause skin irritations and react dangerously with other chemicals in our environment.
eWater Sanitiser -
eWater contains a higher concentration of Hypochlorous Acid than found in bleach diluted at 1000ppm.
When produced using electrolysis, caustics like sodium hydroxide are not required to stablise the solution making it much safer to handle and use without PPE.
Produced at a lower pH than bleach, eWater Sanitiser contains no hypochlorites that reduce the antimicrobial efficacy of the solution. For this reason, eWater Sanitiser can achieve comparable kill rates for viral and bacterial microorganisms at a much lower like-for-like ‘Part Per Million’ (PPM) concentration.
It is a nonirritating solution and has been demonstrated to have lower cytotoxicity to mammalian cells than sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl).
Where and how is HCIO used?
With new technology capable of producing high concentrate and relatively stable HCIO, this chemical is now used across many industries and application. These include:
Food processing
Hospital disinfection
Wound healing
Commercial cleaning
Dentistry
Veterinary
Water treatment
Is HCIO recognized by government bodies
HCIO is well recognized globally. This includes –
Therapeutic Goods Administration Australia
World Health Organisation
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Environmental Protection Agency, US
Ministry of Health Japan
European Chemical Agency
National Health Service, UK