Abstract
Sulfur dioxide is recognized as a major air pollutant, particularly near large cities (Rall, 1974), while the ionized forms, bisulfite and sulfite, are found as preservatives in food and wine. In the lung, sulfur dioxide is hydrated rapidly according to the following equation,
with the equilibrium constant 1.07 × 102 mole/liter. The bisulfite anion is a weak acid which dissociates according to the reaction,
with an equilibrium constant of 1.07 × 107 mole/liter. At pH values above 7 the equilibrium lies to the right and sulfite predominates, although there is always an equilibrium between sulfite and bisulfite. In this paper the terminology (bi)sulfite will be used when it cannot be determined which species is involved in a given reaction.
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© 1985 Springer Science+Business Media New York
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Chignell, C.F., Mottley, C., Sivarajah, K., Eling, T.E., Mason, R.P. (1985). An ESR Study of the Oxidation and Reduction of Bisulfite (Hydrated Sulfur Dioxide) in Biological Systems. In: Pullman, A., Vasilescu, V., Packer, L. (eds) Water and Ions in Biological Systems. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-0424-9_68
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-0424-9_68
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