Any "O3" users out there?

jaap

Hi

Are there any folks out there with experinence from _actually_ handling the Russian "O3" stuff?

Please, if you have not used it but have heard rumors about how nasty it is spare this thread from it.

I'm a chemist and have been diving and tinkering with rebreathers for 5-6 years and know that this "O3" stuff is not "safe" and that the name "O3" has nothing to do with ozone, O3. AFAIK its supposed to be mostly KO2, and that makes sense.

I got a keg of it in the basement, obtained it for running some after hours analysis of its actual composition and for some experimenting.

The thing I don't get is how anyone could dive with it! The smell is bad! Smells like some kind of organic ammonia compound... very strange.

So does anyone know if its supposed to smell that way, or have I gotten hold of a contaminated sample? The granules are yellowish.

I have not had any time to analyze it yet.

wedivebc

KO2 is also the active ingredient in a Chemox breathing apparatus used by many navies throughout the world. I instruct user in its operation every day and use literally hundreds of cannisters every month.
The compund does not have a smell in use or even when not activated. It is very dangerous and any hydrocarbons coming in contact with the KO2 will result in an interesting fireworks show, I also know that because we used to demonstrate what could happen before the navy decided it was too risky.
I expect your KO2 has been exposed to moisture and/or CO2 and has broken down.

__________________
Cheers,

Dave....

Man is the only animal burdened with the knowledge he will eventually die

GKAM

I second that. We had potassium superoxide (KO2) canisters used in firefighting units when i was doing my National Servce in the Greek Navy. I think they were made by MSA - we used to call them OBAs (oxygen breathing apparatus). There was no noticable smell or after taste when using them. There must be something wrong with your lot.

Besides, as you rightly said, why would you want to take that stuff with you underwater anyway???

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Stay #

jaap

OK thanks

I just wish to take a look at it to see if it is really KO2, since there are some rumors about its composition. I don't think I will dare taking it UW.

Altough there are a few divers around here that actually use the IDA-71 in near original configurations including packing one o the scrubbers with O3...
According to them a little water on it is not that bad.


The stuff I got is probably quite old so its possible that it has degraded to some extent or been exposed to some contaminants.

wedivebc

I am not familiar with the units that use KO2 but I doubt the IDA-71 uses it. KO2 actually generates O2 and therefore needs no external gas supply.

__________________
Cheers,

Dave....

Man is the only animal burdened with the knowledge he will eventually die

GKAM

The IDA-71, does use potassium superoxide in its original configuration. There are two scrubber canisters on the unit. The first one contains a conventional CO2 removal agent and the second one is filled with KO2.

Once the unit switches to nitrox mode, the KO2 is used to generate O2 in the loop along with the EANx off-board unit once the O2 tank cuts off via a hydrostatic valve. Dave Sutton describes things in his site quite well.

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Skipbreather

Hi Dave-

Actually, the IDA71 really DID use O3 in its original military configuration. Not knowing this fact has killed more than a few casual homebuilders. The problem came into play when the rig was used with the off board nitrox bottle.

The rig would initially be dived as a pure O2 rig w/ onboard O2 supply. When venturing below about 15 M- yes, 15 M- a mechanical device in the lines to the offboard bottle would purge the CL automatically w/ nitrox. A shuttle valve in the offboard connector at the base if the rig would then shift the supply to the ADV from the on board O2 bottle to the off board nitrox bottle. I believe the mechanism was via higher IP in nitrox 1st stage than the O2 1st stage. At this point you were completely cut off from the on board O2. There was no way to access it. More than one homebuilder has suffered fatal hypoxia due to ignorance of this process. ALL make up O2 came from the O3 media in one of the two scrubbers- which is why the scrubbers were painted different colors. The blue ones were supposedly reserved for the O3.

The return to the surface reversed the process. Again at around 15 M the mechanical controller purged the CL, this time w/ the on board O2. The off board nitrox bottle was now isolated from the system letting the O2 shuttle the ADV supply valve & resume supplying the CL. The large amount of gas released in these events was why the output of the OP valve was rerouted internally from over the right shoulder blade to the top left side of the rig. No electronics of any kind were used, neither for control nor monitoring.

Scares me and I’m fearless (not……… )



Ken