Ozone Measurement Units
In applications where ozone is generated and used for air or water treatment application, it is important to be able to know
and communicate the concentration of ozone. There are techniques for measuring the ozone present in air or water, for
example, the use of UV radiation at 254 nm, but there still need to be units of measure to translate these results into
meaningful numbers for technicians to use.
A unit of measurement in the gas phase grams of ozone per normal cubic meter usually written as g/Nm3. the term
normal in this expression is critical since a gases density is influenced by pressure. Normal in this case refers to the the
conditions at which the measurement was taken, or the condition to which it has been adjusted. Normal here refers to
standard pressure and temperature as agreed to internationally: P (Standard) = 1 atm or 760 mmHg or 1.01325 bar and
T (standard) = 0 degrees C or 32 degrees F or 273.15 degrees K. Since actual measurements will be done at conditions
most likely different than the international standards, the measurement devices are fitted with the ability to compensate
for these differences and present the results in g/Nm3. Thus, the measured g/m3 value is multiplied by (P (Standard)/T
(Standard)) X (T (measured)/ P(Measured)).
Another unit of measure that is often used is ppmv, which is part per million on a volume by volume basis. The
measurement ppmv is proportional to g/Nm3: 466.43 ppmv = 1 g/Nm3.
Another important unit of measure is percent weight by weight (%wt/wt). This can be a very useful unit of measurement.
If the mass flow of feed gas for an ozone generator is known, say by using a thermal mass flow meter, than knowing the
%wt/wt will allow one to know the mass of ozone by simple multiplication. In order to derive the %wt/wt from the g/Nm3
value, one must know the density of ozone and the density of the feed gas. To calculate the %wt/wt one divides the
quantity (100 X the measured g/Nm3) by the following value:
g/Nm3 - (the ratio of feed gas density to ozone density) X g/Nm3 + feed gas density
So, if the measured concentration of ozone were 100 g/Nm3 and the feed gas was oxygen (1,428.96 g/Nm3) then
knowing that ozone has a density of 2,143.93 will result in a % wt/wt value of 6.84. If air is the feed gas the result would
be different, i.e. about 10% lower than the value 6.84 shown above.
In water treatment applications we normally use the terms ppm, which is really part per million by weight (ppmw). We
could also use the terms g/m3 since 1 g/m3 = 1 ppmw. The density of water changes very little with changing
temperature. We normally are referring to dissolved ozone when we talk about the concentration of ozone in water.
Since ozone is produced as a gas, care must be taken to insure that the gas bubbles have been separated from the
water prior to making a measurement. Ozone can be measured using the UV method mentioned above or by an
electrochemical method. Both methods can result in accurate reading in ppmw when carried out properly.
In applications where ozone is generated and used for air or water treatment application, it is important to be able to know
and communicate the concentration of ozone. There are techniques for measuring the ozone present in air or water, for
example, the use of UV radiation at 254 nm, but there still need to be units of measure to translate these results into
meaningful numbers for technicians to use.
A unit of measurement in the gas phase grams of ozone per normal cubic meter usually written as g/Nm3. the term
normal in this expression is critical since a gases density is influenced by pressure. Normal in this case refers to the the
conditions at which the measurement was taken, or the condition to which it has been adjusted. Normal here refers to
standard pressure and temperature as agreed to internationally: P (Standard) = 1 atm or 760 mmHg or 1.01325 bar and
T (standard) = 0 degrees C or 32 degrees F or 273.15 degrees K. Since actual measurements will be done at conditions
most likely different than the international standards, the measurement devices are fitted with the ability to compensate
for these differences and present the results in g/Nm3. Thus, the measured g/m3 value is multiplied by (P (Standard)/T
(Standard)) X (T (measured)/ P(Measured)).
Another unit of measure that is often used is ppmv, which is part per million on a volume by volume basis. The
measurement ppmv is proportional to g/Nm3: 466.43 ppmv = 1 g/Nm3.
Another important unit of measure is percent weight by weight (%wt/wt). This can be a very useful unit of measurement.
If the mass flow of feed gas for an ozone generator is known, say by using a thermal mass flow meter, than knowing the
%wt/wt will allow one to know the mass of ozone by simple multiplication. In order to derive the %wt/wt from the g/Nm3
value, one must know the density of ozone and the density of the feed gas. To calculate the %wt/wt one divides the
quantity (100 X the measured g/Nm3) by the following value:
g/Nm3 - (the ratio of feed gas density to ozone density) X g/Nm3 + feed gas density
So, if the measured concentration of ozone were 100 g/Nm3 and the feed gas was oxygen (1,428.96 g/Nm3) then
knowing that ozone has a density of 2,143.93 will result in a % wt/wt value of 6.84. If air is the feed gas the result would
be different, i.e. about 10% lower than the value 6.84 shown above.
In water treatment applications we normally use the terms ppm, which is really part per million by weight (ppmw). We
could also use the terms g/m3 since 1 g/m3 = 1 ppmw. The density of water changes very little with changing
temperature. We normally are referring to dissolved ozone when we talk about the concentration of ozone in water.
Since ozone is produced as a gas, care must be taken to insure that the gas bubbles have been separated from the
water prior to making a measurement. Ozone can be measured using the UV method mentioned above or by an
electrochemical method. Both methods can result in accurate reading in ppmw when carried out properly.
Spartan Environmental Technologies
Air and Water Treatment
Air and Water Treatment
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Phone: 800-492-1252
Fax: 440-368-3569
E-mail: info@
spartanwatertreatment.com