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Peracetic acid is suitably applicable for cooling tower water disinfection


Peracetic Acid serves as a colourless liquid with a strong, pungent acrid odour. It is having a low pH value of 2.8. It (C2H4O3) is a mixture of acetic acid (CH3COOH) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in a watery solution. It can also be manufactured by oxidation of acetaldehyde. Peracetic acid is usually developed in concentrations of 5-15%.

When peracetic acid dissolves in water, it breaks down to hydrogen peroxide and acetic acid, which in turn disintegrates into water, carbon dioxide and oxygen. The degradation products of Peracetic Acid are non-toxic and get easily dissolved in water. It manifests as a very powerful oxidant; the oxidation potential surpasses that of chlorine and chlorine dioxide. 



Peracetic acid is employed mainly in the food industry, where it is enforced as a disinfectant and as a cleanser. It was also involved in the disinfection of recycled rinsing water for foodstuffs. It finds use in many applications such as a bactericide and fungicide, especially in food processing, as an oxidant for preparing epoxy compounds, as a reagent in making glycerol and caprolactum, as a bleaching agent, a polymerization catalyst for polyester resins and as a sterilizing agent.

It can be applied during water purification as a disinfectant and for plumbing disinfection. In the recent years, peracetic acid is employed for disinfecting medical supplies and to help in the prevention of formation of biofilm in pulp industries. Peracetic acid is suitably applicable for cooling tower water disinfection and it efficiently aids in preventing biofilm formation and controls the growth of Legionella bacteria.


Peracetic acid can be employed for the deactivation of a wide category of pathogenic microorganisms. It also aids in deactivating spores and viruses. As a disinfectant, peracetic acid brings about the oxidation of the outer cell membranes of microorganisms. The oxidation mechanism involves the transfer of electrons. When a stronger oxidant is applied, the electrons are transferred at a much faster rate to the microorganism, causing them to undergo rapid deactivation.
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