The Science Behind Yvana Hahn
Get to know to know our star ingredient, chlorine dioxide, with more scientifically forward dialogue
What Exactly is Chlorine Dioxide?
And How Does It Work?
Chlorine dioxide—not to be mistaken with chlorine—is a yellowish-green gas that rapidly decomposes when in contact with the air but remains a true gas at room temperature and a dissolved gas in a solution. Due to its high reactivity and its ability to work under a wide pH range, it remains an extremely versatile chemical with powerful antimicrobial properties and deodorizing capabilities with just small quantities. This basically means that less is more when it comes to using chlorine dioxide in comparison to other similar types of disinfecting chemicals. You don't need much to pack a punch.
Its unstable nature typically requires it to be produced on-site at industrial facilities for immediate use under strict guidelines in order to avoid dangerous levels of exposure to the general public. But, with a considerable amount of research & design, we've now made this chemical available to the baseline consumer in a cosmetically elegant way, to be used within the home, public spaces, or wherever you are on a day-to-day basis.
Fewer Disinfection byproducts (DBPs) than chlorine or bleach
A high efficacy and safe disinfectant recommended by
Tested & Trusted
We believe in our products and so does science. That's why we're proud to show you how Yvana Hahn performs, backed by proven results.
Our active ingredient
Newgyne®
Newgyne® is a gentle, but potent chlorine dioxide-based powder specially created by us, for you. We’re bringing industrial cleaning power to the general consumer in a way that’s safe, non-toxic, non-irritating, and non-corrosive.
Newgyne® works by initiating efficient denaturation reactions with specific animo acids, particularly cysteine, a key component of structural proteins, and by doing so, disrupting the 3D structure and biological mechanisms critical to their function. It simultaneously breaks down thiol bonds, which are responsible for persistent and unpleasant odors. The result? A formula that both disinfects and deodorizes, silently, effectively, and gently.
From ClO2 to Newgyne®: Science Perfected For Daily Life
At Yvana Hahn®, we recognized the remarkable potential of chlorine dioxide but also its limitations for everyday use. Our team dedicated years of research and innovation to transform this powerful molecule into Newgyne®, our proprietary active ingredient designed for safe, effective, and convenient daily hygiene.
Overcoming Traditional Limitations
Newgyne® retains the oxidative power of ClO₂ while overcoming its traditional challenges through:
Instead of relying on unstable gas, Newgyne® is precisely engineered in solid form, allowing it to dissolve safely and efficiently in water at the moment of use. This ensures maximum potency and freshness while eliminating the risks associated with storing gaseous chlorine dioxide.
Every component used in Newgyne®-containing products is selected from medicinal, food-grade, or cosmetic-grade materials. This means they’re not only safe for human contact but can also be naturally metabolized, minimizing any residual impact on both the body and the environment.
Unlike chlorine, bleach, and many other disinfectants that generate carcinogenic by-products, Newgyne®’s reactions primarily produce chloride ions, a naturally occurring substance also found in table salt, ensuring peace of mind for both health and the environment.
Newgyne® reacts selectively with critical amino acids, especially cysteine and other building blocks of microbial proteins, to swiftly destabilize pathogens. Simultaneously, it breaks down thiol bonds responsible for persistent odors, delivering both disinfection and deodorization in one elegant solution.
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What You Should Know
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The Basics
First discovered in 1811 by Sir Humphrey Davy, chlorine dioxide is a selective (a feature of targeted oxidation) oxidant with low oxidation power. Therefore it’s allowed to be present at specific concentrations in drinking water. In addition, due to its strong oxidation capacity (gaining 5 elections) and rich in available chlorine, it is a high efficacy oxidant. Because of these unique properties, chlorine dioxide becomes a great general purpose disinfection choice against pathogens such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and algae.
The chlorine dioxide molecule contains an unpaired electron and two reaction centers (chlorine and oxygen), resulting in properties different from those of other oxidants.
It is a disinfectant of high efficacy and safety with broad applications.
Chlorine dioxide is a synthetic, green-yellowish gas with a chlorine-like, irritating odor at room temperature. It is an unstable gas, not existing in nature, that dissociates into chlorine gas (Cl2), oxygen gas (O2) and heat. It can be photo-oxidized by sunlight. Chlorine dioxide turns into gas at 11°C (boiling point).
One of the most important properties of chlorine dioxide is its high water solubility, especially in cold water. It is approximately 10 times more soluble in water than chlorine. Chlorine dioxide does not hydrolyze when it enters water. It remains a dissolved gas in solution and retains its oxidative and biocidal properties.
Chlorine dioxide gas cannot be stored for too long because it slowly dissociates into chlorine and oxygen. It is rarely transported because of its explosiveness and instability and usually manufactured on site.
In a water solution, chlorine dioxide is very stable if the solution is protected from light and heat.
Chlorine dioxide has many applications:
- In the electronics industry to clean circuit boards
- In the oil industry to treat sulfides
- In the pulp and paper industry to bleach paper
- In the medical industry to sterilize medical equipment, air, surfaces, rooms and tools
- In the water industry to remove the taste, odor, color, phenol, iron and manganese.
As a disinfectant and biocide, it is mainly used in liquid form (water solution).
The Mechanism
As an oxidant, chlorine dioxide is targeted where it is needed the most, i.e. “selective”. It quickly attacks the electron-rich centers of organic molecules such as organic sulphides compounds, secondary (R2NH) and tertiary (R3N) amines, phenol, and some other reactive organic substances such as Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). It does not break carbon connections, aromatic cores, carboxylic structures, primary (RNH2) amines, urea and other substances.
Due to its high selectivity, less chlorine dioxide is required to disinfect pathogens. In comparison to chlorine and ozone, it's an active residual disinfectant.
Selectivity of ClO2 between humans and bacteria is based not on their different biochemistry, but on their different sizes.
Oxidation strength describes how strongly an oxidant reacts with an oxidizable substance. Ozone has the highest oxidation strength and reacts with every substance that can be oxidized. On the contrary, Chlorine dioxide is significantly weaker on oxidation strength.
Weak oxidation strength and high selectivity make chlorine dioxide a safe oxidant.
The oxidation capacity refers to how many electrons are transferred in an oxidation reaction. The chlorine atom in chlorine dioxide has an oxidation number of +4. After receiving 5 electrons, it is reduced to a stable chloride ion (Cl-).
Chlorine dioxide contains, mole for mole, 276% more available chlorine than sodium chlorite and 263 % more than chlorine, which makes it 2.5 times more oxidation capacity than chlorine.
A high oxidation capacity and rich in available chlorine make CLO2 have a high oxidative load against pathogens.
For chlorine dioxide, like ozone, the predominant oxidation reaction mechanism is a process known as free radical electrophilic (i.e. electron-attracting) abstraction. Chlorinating agents like chlorine or hypochlorite, in contrast, undergo oxidative substitution or addition reactions. This means that chlorinated organic compounds such as THMs and HAAs are not formed during oxidation with chlorine dioxide.
Unlike the ozonization of organic substances by ozone, chlorine dioxide does not produce significant amounts of organic substances such as aldehydes, ketones, ketone acids or other byproducts.
These are the reasons why chlorine dioxide has many industrial, municipal and residential applications such as sewage water disinfection, cooling tower water disinfection, industrial air treatment, food production and treatment, and sterilization of medical equipment.
The reaction process of chlorine dioxide with bacteria, viruses and other substances, takes place in two steps.
First, chlorine dioxide takes up an electron and reduces to chlorite ion:
ClO2 + e- = ClO2-
Secondly, the chlorite ion is oxidized and becomes a very stable chloride ion:
ClO2- + 4H+ + 4e- = Cl- + 2H2O
The final end-product of chlorine dioxide oxidation reactions is chloride (Cl-).
The reaction of chlorine dioxide with vital amino acids is one of the dominant processes in destroying bacteria and viruses. The oxidizable material within the cells and on the surface of cell membranes reacts with chlorine dioxide, causing disruption to cell metabolism. It also reacts directly with the amino acids and the RNA in the cell, which prevents the production of proteins.
The small pathogens are killed extremely fast, with the killing time for a bacterium is on the order of milliseconds in a 300 ppm ClO2 solution. A few minutes of contact time is quite enough to kill all bacteria with minimized cytotoxic effects to the living tissues.
- Chlorine dioxide disrupts the cell metabolism of the bacteria to destroy them, i.e. changing the cell membrane proteins and fat and penetrating the cell wall.
- Chlorine dioxide eliminates the viruses by reacting with peptone and preventing protein formation.
Contrary to chlorine, chlorine dioxide is effective at a pH of between 3 and 10. Chlorine dioxide does not hydrolyze, so pH value does not affect its oxidation and disinfection capability. At the concentrations required for disinfection, chlorine dioxide is non-corrosive and non-irritating.
Chlorine dioxide solution is very effective but non-irritating or non-corrosive at low concentration.
Resistance
Since the electrophilic abstraction oxidation reaction without oxidative substitution or addition is independent of the reaction time or concentration, the required concentration of chlorine dioxide needed to effectively kill microorganisms is lower than those of non-oxidizing disinfectants.
Unlike non-oxidizing disinfectants, chlorine dioxide kills microorganisms even when they are inactive. Most microorganisms are unable to build up resistance to it because they are destroyed via the oxidative load placed on their cells by chlorine dioxide.
- Pathogens cannot build up resistance against chlorine dioxide.
Chlorine dioxide in an aqueous solution can penetrate the slime layers of bacteria. It oxidizes the polysaccharide matrix that keeps the bio film together and breaks the bio film, which allows it to act on the bacteria themselves. During this reaction, chlorine dioxide is reduced to chlorite ions (ClO2-). When the bio film starts to grow again, an acid environment is formed and the chlorite ions are transformed into chlorine dioxide, which removes the remaining bio film.
It is effective against spore-forming bacteria so it can be used against anthrax.
- Chlorine dioxide eliminates bio film, kills the bacteria associated with the bio film and prevents bio film formation like no other biocides.
Chlorine dioxide is effective against Giardia Lambia and Cryptosporidium parasites, which are found in drinking water and induce diseases like 'giardiasis' and 'cryptosporidiosis'.
Chlorine dioxide even kills a variety of parasites.
Applications
For the pre-oxidation and reduction of organic substances, between 0.5 and 2 ppm of chlorine dioxide is required at a contact time between 15 and 30 minutes. Water quality determines the required contact time.
For post-disinfection, concentrations between 0.2 and 0.4 ppm are applied. The residual byproduct concentration of chlorite is very low and there are no risks for human health.
The maximum chlorine dioxide concentration in the drinking water is 0.8ppm by EPA.
The more powerful the oxidant, the more harmful for living organisms. Chlorine dioxide is above oxygen but far below ozone in terms of its oxidation power. A fixed low concentration will therefore not result in any problems for fish or other living organisms. The combination of low oxidation strength, high oxidation capacity, and no harmful byproducts makes chlorine dioxide safe and easy to use in aquaculture.
Consistently applying low concentration chlorine dioxide will result in:
- less bacterial problems
- less water odor
- less biofilm and algae formed on walls and pipes
- better water quality
- more healthy fish
The maintenance dosage is suggested to be 0.01-0.04 ppm once a week.
You can dose 10ml - 30ml of 12,000 ppm (i.e. 0.012 – 0.036 ppm) or 40ml - 120 ml of 3,000 ppm stock solution per 10,000 liter or 2,600 Gal of water.
First-time-use dosage is suggested to be 0.1 - 0.15 ppm once every other day for 5 times in succession due to high level of bacteria and dissolved organic matters (DOM) in water. Afterwards, switch to maintenance dosage.
You can dose 100ml of 12,000 ppm (i.e. 0.12 ppm) or 400ml of 3,000 ppm stock solution per 10,000 liter or 2,600 Gal water.
Using chlorine dioxide to purify the fish pond water will maintain high water quality and active and healthy fish.
Chlorine dioxide is a great choice of disinfectant for swimming pools. It kills pathogens including bacteria, viruses and fungi in the water and stops algae from growing on the walls. It protects women from gynecologic diseases caused by different types of bacterial infections. For babies or people with sensitive skin, there will be much less irritation compared to chlorine, especially in a public swimming pool. Pink eye, or conjuctivitis, which is a viral or bacterial infection in the eye that is highly contagious, can be combatted by using chlorine dioxide. As a water purifier, it can also protect swimmers from being exposed to toxic nitrogenous (chloramines) or carcinogenic organic residuals (trihalomethanes) and HAAs.
The maintenance dosage of chlorine dioxide is suggested at: 0.1 - 0.2 ppm once a week.
You can dose 100ml of 12,000 ppm (i.e. 0.12 ppm) or 400ml of 3,000 ppm stock solution per 10,000 liter or 2,600 Gal water.
Summary: Using chlorine dioxide in swimming pool disinfection generates no harmful byproducts and protect swimmers from many diseases.
Oral malodor, common when waking up, can affect people of all ages. Longstanding oral malodor is usually caused by oral diseases. The most likely causes are the accumulation of food debris and dental bacterial plaque on the teeth and tongue from poor oral hygiene, gingivitis (gum inflammation) and periodontitis (gum disease). Adult periodontitis from accumulated plaque related to the loss of periodontal attachment can cause variable degrees of oral malodor. Aggressive periodontitis by rapid loss of the periodontal bone and resultant tooth mobility can cause intense oral malodor. Xerostomia (dryness of the mouth) and wearing dentures may also cause or enhance malodor.
For oral cleansing, it is suggested to gargle for 30 seconds with 1 ppm solution once a day.
You can use 10ml of 100 ppm (i.e. 1 ppm) or 3ml of 300 ppm stock solution per 1 liter of water.
Summary: Chlorine dioxide can be used as a mouthwash to minimize the oral bacterial and help prevent bad breath, dental plague, decayed tooth, gum disease and ulcer.
Onychomycosis is a fungus infection of the finger or toe nails which can be difficult to cure. A person usually has had athlete's foot for a long time prior to the development of onychomycosis. Human bodies allow the fungus to become established without an immune response to suppress the fungus. Antifungal compounds usually cannot penetrate the nail bed to kill the fungus at its source.
Soaking the fungal infected nails in the chlorine dioxide solution for a period of time, allowing it to penetrate the nail plate and inactivates pathogens residing in the nailbed, can help improve the appearance of the nail, destroy the fungal infection and promote healthy nail growth.
For eliminating the fungal infection, it is suggested to soak the infected nails in the solution of 100 ppm for 30-60 minutes once a day for a week.
Summary: Chlorine dioxide can kill fungi and help improve the fungus infected nails and athlete’s foot.
It can disinfect the water, remove bio film, and prevent biofilm formation in cooling towers. The removal of bio film prevents damage to and corrosion of equipment and piping. It is effective in removing Legionella in cooling towers, an ideal environment for Legionella growth.
Chlorine dioxide is great for killing Legionella, which can be fatal, in high humidity environments like cooling towers, spas, and warm springs.
