How does chlorine disinfection work? Chlorine kills pathogens such as bacteria and viruses by breaking the chemical bonds in their molecules. Disinfectants that are used for this purpose consist of chlorine compounds which can exchange atoms with other compounds, such as enzymes in bacteria and other cells.

What is the process of chlorination?

Chlorination is the process of adding chlorine to drinking water to kill parasites, bacteria, and viruses. ... Using or drinking water with small amounts of chlorine does not cause harmful health effects and provides protection against waterborne disease outbreaks.

What happens when chlorine is added to water?

Chlorine will react in water to form hypochlorous acid, which can then dissociate into hydrogen and hypochlorite ions, according to Eqn (1). This reaction is very important, as the disinfecting power of HOCl, hypochlorous acid, is about 40–80 times that of OCl⁻, hypochlorite.