Humans have used chemical disinfectants for sterilization since the early 19th century. After the first generation of chemical disinfectant bleaching powder came out in 1820, it was mainly used for drinking water disinfection and the treatment of infected wounds, and achieved good results, opening the first milestone of chemical disinfection. Since then, people have discovered the second generation disinfectant ethylene oxide, the third generation disinfectant glutaraldehyde. A new generation of high-efficiency chemical disinfectants has finally come out, and this is what is called the fourth generation of chlorine dioxide.

   Chlorine dioxide was born in 1811, and people did not use it for sterilization in the early years. It was not until 1940 that the industrial production of sodium hypochlorite began to be used on a large scale. In 1940, the Niagara Falls in the United States first adopted it to treat drinking water and achieved good results, and then quickly spread it to the world. People have gradually discovered that when disinfecting drinking water with chlorine gas, organic substances in water will react with chlorine gas to generate organochlorine compounds, which will accumulate in the human body and cause chronic cumulative poisoning, which will also induce cancer. It is forbidden to use chlorine gas for disinfection of drinking water, and it is recommended to use a universal, highly oxidizing and efficient disinfectant chlorine dioxide for disinfection of drinking water.

   Chlorine dioxide has been classified by the United Nations Health Organization (WHO) as a Class I disinfectant