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Wisconsin engine TF 1954 assembled on a generator welder Hobart GW-222

Now the restoration has been completed. I want to say thanks to Mr Dale Ray and Tom Wooding from Wisconsin Motors LLC and Wisconsin Motors Canada ...

OZONE, the word of the week

Ozone is a very reactive gas, and even at low concentrations it is irritating and toxic. It occurs naturally in small amounts in the Earth’s upper atmosphere, and in the air of the lower atmosphere after a lightning storm. At room temperature, ozone is a pale blue gas with a sharp odor, characteristic of the air after a thunderstorm or near an old electric motor. It condenses to a dark blue liquid at -112°C and freezes at -193°C.

Ozone is much more reactive than O2. It is a very powerful oxidizing agent, second among elements only to fluorine. It can oxidize many organic compounds and is used commercially as a bleach for waxes, oils, and textiles, and as a deodorizing agent. Because it is a powerful germicide, it is also used to sterilize air and drinking water. Ozone is usually manufactured by passing an electrical discharge through O2 gas or through dry air. The resulting mixture of ozone and O2 or air is usually suitable for most industrial applications of ozone. Because ozone is very unstable and reactive, the preparation of pure ozone is both difficult and hazardous and is seldom attempted.

Ozone can be formed when a mixture of O2 and NO2 is exposed to bright light. Such mixtures occur in the polluted air of large cities. The concentration of NO2 in air is usually very low, because N2 and O2 do not react at normal temperatures. However, in the hot, reacting gases inside the cylinders of internal combustion engines, nitrogen and oxygen can react. —

The oxygen atom formed in this process is extremely reactive and readily attaches to a molecule of O2, forming ozone.

O(g) + O2(g) — O3(g)

On sunny days where NO2 pollution from traffic is high, the concentration of ozone in the air can reach levels that are dangerous for plants and animals. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency characterizes ozone levels as “unhealthful” when they exceed the National Ambient Air Quality Standard of 125 parts per billion (ppb). In the state of Wisconsin, an “ozone alert” is issued when the average concentration of ozone over a four hour period is over 100 ppb. An “ozone warning” is announced when the this level reaches 300 ppb. An «ozone emergency» is declared when it exceeds 350 ppb. In addition to posing a threat to health, ozone in the air also damages polymeric materials such as rubber and plastics, causing them to deteriorate prematurely.

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