Note 27 — Chapter IV · OZONE AND HYDROGEN PEROXIDE—DALTON'S LAW

To explain the phenomenon, an hypothesis has been put forward by Brodie, Clausius, and Schönbein which supposes ordinary oxygen to be an electrically neutral substance, composed, so to speak, of two electrically opposite kinds of oxygen—positive and negative. It is supposed that hydrogen peroxide contains one kind of such polar oxygen, whilst in the oxides of the above-named metals the oxygen is of opposite polarity. It is supposed that in the oxides of the metals the oxygen is electro-negative, and in hydrogen peroxide electro-positive, and that on the mutual contact of these substances ordinary neutral oxygen is evolved as a consequence of the mutual attraction of the oxygens of opposite polarity. Brodie admits the polarity of oxygen in combination, but not in an uncombined state, whilst Schönbein supposes uncombined oxygen to be polar also, considering ozone as electro-negative oxygen. The supposition that the oxygen of ozone is different from that of hydrogen peroxide is contradicted by the fact that in acting on barium peroxide strong sulphuric acid forms ozone, and dilute acid forms hydrogen peroxide.