A Dutch chemist called Van Marum was probably the first person to detect ozone gas via smell.

In the description of his experiments, he mentioned the notion of a characteristic smell around his electrifier

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However, the discovery of ozone was only just mentioned by name a short time later, in a writing of Schönbein that dates back to 1840. This discovery was presented to the University of München. Schönbein had noticed the same characteristic smell during his experiments, that Van Marum had tried to identify earlier. He called this gas 'ozone', which is distracted from ozein; the Greek word for scent. Generally, the discovery of ozone is ascribed to Schönbein. Moreover, Schönbein is mentioned as the first person to research the reaction mechanisms of ozone and organic matter.

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After 1840, many studies on the disinfection mechanism of ozone followed. The first ozone generator was manufactured in Berlin by Von Siemens. This manufacturer also wrote a book about ozone application in water. This caused a number of pilot projects to take place, during which the disinfection mechanism of ozone was researched.

The French chemist Marius Paul Otto (figure 1) received a doctorate at the French University,

for his essay on ozone. He was the first person to start a specialized company for the

manufacture of ozone installations: 'Compagnie des Eaux et de l’Ozone'.