Fake car ozone generator, who are these people ? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: MrMetthew
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 29, 2015, 01:26:50 pm
content: Ordered a cheap car ozone generator from ebay (seller double-turbo). This is what I get :p. No ozone generating element whatsoever just a blue led in series with a resistor to poorly imitate the blue-ish glow of the real thing. And ohwjeah, ofcourse also a completely random transistor connected to absolutely nothing :p. I mean who are the people designing making and selling this? How in Godsname could you fill youre days making COMPLETELY bulshit items like this, lowering the quality of life around the world? I just thought it was funny just how shamelessly in-the-face fake this product was, thought I'd shared it.

author: McBryce
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 29, 2015, 01:30:02 pm
content: Does it work??McBryce.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 29, 2015, 01:41:05 pm
content: On the other hand only idiot would like to breath ozone (use such devices as the air purifier) as ozone is highly toxic. And BTW you cannot put ozone generator or air ionizer into such size as it requires very high voltage. Few kV to something happen at all and tens of kV to actually work.

author: Mechanical Menace
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 29, 2015, 01:44:58 pm
content: I'd personally take chlorine dioxide route. With the concentrations of ozone you need to work it'll probably do much more damage to the car's upholstery etc. And chlorine dioxide is arguably not only more effective and easier to use but safer too.QuoteBy getting paid so been able to eat at the end of the day. I think the question should be how could you commission and sell that crap.

author: MrMetthew
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 29, 2015, 02:01:17 pm
content: Quote from: wraper on July 29, 2015, 01:41:05 pmYes you're right it requires a high voltage to generate ozone. But you stopped thinking there :p. You just use a step up converter of any sorts, better not try to accomplish it with 12 volts. Sorry maybe that was a bit harsh :p. Anyway bigclivedotcom made a video about them, how they work and how there really are genuine specimens floating around. And yes pure ozone is toxic, but clearing odors from a car with ozone is a real thing. But ofcourse you should use the thing wisely so you don't expose yourself to the ozone to much.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 29, 2015, 07:36:52 pm
content: Quote from: MrMetthew on July 29, 2015, 02:01:17 pmGenuine my ass. Those "genuine" ones on the video generate as much ozone as contained in my fart. There is nowhere near voltage (seems below 1000V according to the circuit) to generate any noticeable amount of ozone if anything at all. Anyway, if there is some real ozone, it will smell really nasty. If it doesn't smell, there is no ozone.Edit:Why do they need that neon lamp anyway? For the glow effect I guessas there is no real corona discharge.

author: daqq
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 29, 2015, 08:39:35 pm
content: QuoteWhile I doubt the usefulness of such a device, it is quite possible to generate absurd voltages within a very small volume - see piezoelectric transformers, or even simple resonant transformers used in inverters for LCD backlight tubes. Run said voltage through a multiplier, pot the whole assembly and you get tens of kV, albeit with a very low current - which might be enough for someone actually wanting a poisonous gas generator for his car.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 29, 2015, 08:49:58 pm
content: Quote from: daqq on July 29, 2015, 08:39:35 pmThis is where I got <1000V figure, this is similar to backlight inverter. Guess all it does is powering that neon lamp. Probably not directly but by applying HV to the mesh which makes it glow. Don't think that there is any voltage multiplier though, as I don't believe there are any SMD diodes and capacitors on the bottom of PCB and there obviously aren't any of them on top.

author: MrMetthew
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 29, 2015, 10:51:27 pm
content: bigclivedotcom reversed engineered the circuit, but didn't actually calculated the voltage. So I can't say if I believe it would really generate ozone at a usable quantity. Anyway I found it an interesting product and just wanted to check it out and test it, more so than actually use it. Online it seems that people either hate or love ozone, but it really isn't that bad in small quantities from what I read :p.

author: MrMetthew
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 29, 2015, 10:56:46 pm
content: Quote from: daqq on July 29, 2015, 08:39:35 pm

author: Marco
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 30, 2015, 09:52:32 am
content: An Ozone generator in a car would seem stupid, a lot of rubber parts in a car.

author: Marco
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 30, 2015, 10:26:06 am
content: Quote from: wraper on July 29, 2015, 07:36:52 pmIf there is glow there is current, in theory there could only be a breakdown from the filament to the glass and not from the glass to the mesh but the mesh is closer to the glass than the filament. Also looking at his channel I'd say he knows what ozone smells like.

author: Zero999
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 30, 2015, 10:40:27 am
content: Regardless of this, you should return it and give negative feedback.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 30, 2015, 10:56:12 am
content: Quote from: Marco on July 30, 2015, 10:26:06 amIf applying high frequency electric field from the outside of the neon lamp you can make it glow. It is capacitively coupled (few pF between the mesh and electrodes inside the lamp) so some tiny current will flow indeed.

author: Marco
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 30, 2015, 11:31:06 am
content: Quote from: wraper on July 30, 2015, 10:56:12 amA capacitor isn't a very good model for barrier discharge, although I guess you could look at it as an electrolytic capacitor with the gas/air as electrolytes with non-linear resistance.