The heightened public health risks associated with viral contamination in water have led to a strong emphasis on effective disinfection strategies. Ozone is a potent disinfectant widely employed for the inactivation of pathogens, yet comprehensive reports detailing the virucidal efficacy of hydroxyl radical (•OH) generated during ozonation are limited. The present research meticulously deciphered the role and influencing factors of •OH during ozone disinfection processes, elucidating how •OH enhanced ozone-mediated virus inactivation from both kinetic and molecular biological perspectives. The inactivation rate constants of ozone-derived •OH for Phi6 (9.67 × 10¹⁰ M^–1 s^–1) and PhiX174 (3.85 × 10¹⁰ M^–1 s^–1) were 4–5 orders of magnitude higher than those of ozone molecules. At 20°C and pH 7.0, the contribution of •OH to the reduction of viral infectivity has been quantified as ranging from 11.3% to 52.7%. The yield of •OH increased notably as pH rose from 6.0 to 8.0, which was the principal cause for the accelerated apparent virus inactivation rates by ozone. An elevation in temperature (10–30°C) had a negligible impact on •OH yield but facilitated virus removal by enhancing the reactivity of oxidants with viral particles. The damage inflicted on the viral genome by •OH vastly surpassed that caused by ozone, with the reduction in gene copies in the presence of •OH being 297%–343% of the effect observed with ozone alone. The potential interaction sites of ozone and •OH with viral genetic material were predicted using Density Functional Theory static calculations and further compared. The present research offers comprehensive insights into the inactivation capabilities and underlying mechanisms of •OH for the effective control of waterborne viruses, establishing a theoretical foundation for employing the advanced oxidation properties of ozone-derived •OH in developing innovative water disinfection strategies.

中文翻译：

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破译臭氧化过程中羟基自由基的杀病毒潜力：对水传播病毒灭活的影响


与水中病毒污染相关的公共卫生风险增加，导致人们非常重视有效的消毒策略。臭氧是一种广泛用于灭活病原体的强效消毒剂，但详细说明臭氧化过程中产生的羟基自由基 （•OH） 的杀病毒功效的综合报告有限。本研究详细破译了 •OH 在臭氧消毒过程中的作用和影响因素，从动力学和分子生物学的角度阐明了 •OH 如何增强臭氧介导的病毒灭活。Phi6 （9.67 ×^{10 10} M^–1 s^–1） 和 PhiX174 （3.85 ×^{10 10} M^–1 s^–1） 的臭氧衍生 •OH 的灭活速率常数比臭氧分子高 4-5 个数量级。在 20°C 和 pH 7.0 时，•OH 对降低病毒感染性的贡献已被量化为 11.3% 至 52.7%。当 pH 值从 6.0 升高到 8.0 时，•OH 的产量显着增加，这是臭氧加速病毒表观灭活率的主要原因。温度升高 （10–30°C） 对 •OH 产量的影响可以忽略不计，但通过增强氧化剂与病毒颗粒的反应性来促进病毒去除。•OH 对病毒基因组造成的损害大大超过臭氧造成的损害，在 •OH 存在下基因拷贝的减少是单独使用臭氧观察到的效果的 297%–343%。使用密度泛函理论静态计算预测臭氧和 •OH 与病毒遗传物质的潜在相互作用位点，并进一步进行比较。 本研究全面介绍了 •OH 有效控制水生病毒的灭活能力和潜在机制，为利用臭氧衍生的 •OH 的高级氧化特性开发创新的水消毒策略奠定了理论基础。