The global nanobubble standards, in one place
52 published and draft standards across ISO, China, Japan, Korea and Chinese association standards — with real stage codes, real dates, and the four areas where no standard exists at all.
Who writes the rules
ISO/TC 281 "Fine bubble technology" is the only global technical committee in this field. Formed in 2013 with its secretariat in Japan, it has published 40 standards with a further 16 in development. China's SAC/TC 584 mirrors it almost item by item; Japan and Korea have adopted the core parts as JIS and KS. The United States has no dedicated standard at all.
| Body | Scope | Relevance to a buyer |
|---|---|---|
| ISO/TC 281 | Terminology, characterisation, generation methods, application test methods | The reference for what words mean and how a test is run |
| SAC/TC 584 (China) | GB/T and GB/Z series, largely adopted from ISO | Mandatory framing for Chinese public procurement |
| JIS (Japan) | JIS B 8741 / 8744 / 8745 | Japanese market acceptance, largely aligned with ISO |
| KS (Korea) | KS L 1628 glossary series | Korean market; terminology only so far |
| ASTM / US EPA | No nanobubble-specific standard | Acceptance tests and permits do the work instead |
Status codes, translated
ISO stage codes are the fastest way to tell a published standard from a press release. Anything below 60.60 is a draft; 90.xx means published and under review.
| Code | Meaning | Phase |
|---|---|---|
| 10.99 | New project approved | DEV |
| 20.20 | Working draft | DEV |
| 30.00 | Committee draft | DEV |
| 30.60 | Committee draft ballot | DEV |
| 30.99 | Committee draft approved | DEV |
| 40.20 | DIS ballot | DEV |
| 40.60 | DIS approved | DEV |
| 50.00 | Final draft (FDIS) | DEV |
| 60.60 | Published | OK |
| 90.20 | Systematic review | REVIEW |
| 90.92 | Revision needed | REVIEW |
| 90.93 | Confirmed, still valid | OK |
| 95.99 | Withdrawn | DEAD |
Every item, by body
Sorted published-first, then by year. Withdrawn items are kept in the list deliberately — the 2019 agricultural technical specification (ISO/TS 23016-1) was withdrawn and replaced in 2025, and a supplier still citing the old number is telling you when their library stopped being updated.
ISO · ISO/TC 281 · Fine bubble technology · 26 items
| Standard | Title | Year | Stage | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ISO 20304-4:2026 | Water treatment applications — Part 4: Antifouling performance of fine bubble water in crossflow membrane filtration systems | 2026 | 60.60 | Published |
| ISO 21910-2:2025 | Characterization of microbubbles — Part 2: In-situ dynamic image analysis method | 2025 | 60.60 | Published |
| ISO 23016-1:2025 | Agricultural applications — Part 1: Hydroponically grown lettuce growth promotion | 2025 | 60.60 | Published |
| ISO 20480-1:2017/Amd 1:2024 | Terminology — Amendment 1 | 2024 | 60.60 | Published |
| ISO 20304-2:2024 | Water treatment applications — Part 2: Test methods using Escherichia coli | 2024 | 60.60 | Published |
| ISO 20480-5:2023 | General principles — Part 5: Shelled bubble vocabulary | 2023 | 60.60 | Published |
| ISO/TS 21256-4:2023 | Cleaning applications — Part 4: Oil removal from polyester-based textile | 2023 | 90.20 | Systematic review |
| ISO/TS 24217-1:2023 | Guideline for indicating benefits — Part 1: Systematic classification of effective functions | 2023 | 60.60 | Published |
| ISO 20480-3:2021 | General principles — Part 3: Methods for generating fine bubbles | 2021 | 90.20 | Systematic review |
| ISO 20480-4:2021 | General principles — Part 4: Terminology related to microbubble beds | 2021 | 90.93 | Confirmed, still valid |
| ISO 21256-3:2021 | Cleaning applications — Part 3: Test method for cleaning hard flooring surfaces | 2021 | 90.20 | Systematic review |
| ISO/TR 24217-2:2021 | Guideline for indicating benefits — Part 2: Assignment of SDGs to applications | 2021 | 60.60 | Published |
| ISO 21910-1:2020 | Characterization of microbubbles — Part 1: Off-line evaluation of size index | 2020 | 90.92 | Revision needed |
| ISO/TR 23015:2020 | Measurement technique matrix for the characterization of fine bubbles | 2020 | 60.60 | Published |
| ISO 20304-1:2020 | Water treatment applications — Part 1: Ozone fine bubble water generating systems by methylene blue decolorization | 2020 | 90.92 | Revision needed |
| ISO/TS 21256-1:2020 | Cleaning applications — Part 1: Cleaning salt (NaCl)-stained surfaces | 2020 | 90.93 | Confirmed, still valid |
| ISO 21256-2:2020 | Cleaning applications — Part 2: Machine-oil stained surfaces of machined metal parts | 2020 | 90.92 | Revision needed |
| ISO 20480-2:2018 | General principles — Part 2: Categorization of the attributes of fine bubbles | 2018 | 90.93 | Confirmed, still valid |
| ISO 20298-1:2018 | Sampling and sample preparation — Part 1: Ultrafine bubble dispersion in water | 2018 | 90.93 | Confirmed, still valid |
| ISO 21255:2018 | Storage and transportation of ultrafine bubble dispersion in water | 2018 | 90.93 | Confirmed, still valid |
| ISO 20480-1:2017 | General principles — Part 1: Terminology | 2017 | 90.93 | Confirmed, still valid |
| ISO/AWI 20480-6 | General principles — Part 6: Vocabulary related to bubble form | 2026 | 10.99 | New project approved |
| ISO/DIS 21910-1 | Characterization of microbubbles — Part 1 (revision) | 2026 | 40.60 | DIS approved |
| ISO/DIS 20304-3 | Water treatment applications — Part 3: Determining ozone dosage in fine bubble ozonation for treating wastewater | 2026 | 40.60 | DIS approved |
| ISO/CD 21256-5 | Cleaning applications — Part 5: Household mould removal using ultrafine bubble water | 2026 | 30.60 | Committee draft ballot |
| ISO/TS 23016-1:2019 | Agricultural applications — Part 1 (withdrawn) | 2019 | 95.99 | Withdrawn |
China · SAC/TC 584 · GB/T and GB/Z · 21 items
| Standard | Title | Year | Stage | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GB/T 42842.3-2026 | Cleaning applications — Part 3: Hard flooring surfaces | 2026 | live | live |
| GB/Z 43996.3-2026 | Agricultural applications — Part 3: Minimum concentration for barley seed germination | 2026 | live | live |
| GB/T 41914.3-2025 | General principles — Part 3: Methods for generating fine bubbles | 2025 | live | live |
| GB/T 44626.2-2025 | Elimination of bubbles in samples for characterization — Part 2: Techniques | 2025 | live | live |
| GB/T 46918.1-2025 | Measurement of gas content — Part 1: Oxygen content | 2025 | live | live |
| GB/T 46918.2-2025 | Measurement of gas content — Part 2: Hydrogen content | 2025 | live | live |
| GB/T 44376.1-2024 | Water treatment — Part 1: Ozone fine bubble water by methylene blue decolorization | 2024 | live | live |
| GB/T 44626.1-2024 | Elimination of bubbles in samples for characterization — Part 1: Evaluation procedure | 2024 | live | live |
| GB/Z 44377.2-2024 | Guideline for indicating benefits — Part 2: SDGs | 2024 | live | live |
| GB/Z 44387-2024 | Measurement techniques for fine bubble characteristics | 2024 | live | live |
| GB/T 42842.2-2023 | Cleaning applications — Part 2: Machine-oil stained metal parts | 2023 | live | live |
| GB/Z 42842.1-2023 | Cleaning applications — Part 1: Salt (NaCl) stained surfaces | 2023 | live | live |
| GB/T 42843.1-2023 | Sampling and sample preparation — Part 1: Ultrafine bubble dispersion in water | 2023 | live | live |
| GB/T 42844-2023 | Storage and transportation of ultrafine bubble dispersion in water | 2023 | live | live |
| GB/T 42845.1-2023 | Characterization of microbubbles — Part 1: Off-line evaluation of size index | 2023 | live | live |
| GB/T 41914.1-2022 | General principles — Part 1: Terminology | 2022 | live | live |
| GB/T 41914.2-2022 | General principles — Part 2: Categorization of the attributes | 2022 | live | live |
| 20262366-T-491 | Reactive oxygen species in ultrafine bubble dispersion — Part 1: Probe-based kinetic model | 2026 | dev | In development |
| 20253294-T-491 | Measurement of surface tension of ultrafine bubble dispersion | 2025 | dev | In development |
| 20253300-T-491 | Agricultural applications — Part 4: Barley seed germination | 2025 | dev | In development |
| 20253296-T-491 | General principles — Part 5: Shelled bubble vocabulary | 2025 | dev | In development |
Japan · JIS, JISC · 3 items
| Standard | Title | Year | Stage | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JIS B 8741-2:2022 | Fine bubble technology — General principles — Part 2: Categorization of attributes | 2022 | live | live |
| JIS B 8744:2022 | Storage and transportation of ultrafine bubble dispersion in water | 2022 | live | live |
| JIS B 8745-1:2022 | Sampling and sample preparation — Part 1 | 2022 | live | live |
Korea · KS, KATS · 1 items
| Standard | Title | Year | Stage | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KS L 1628-2025 | Glossary of terms and definition of fine bubble technology | 2025 | live | live |
China association · T/ group standards · 1 items
| Standard | Title | Year | Stage | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T/FDSA 0149-2026 | Nano bubble hydrogen-rich drinking water | 2026 | live | live |
What to watch
| Item | What it changes | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| ISO/DIS 20304-3 | Ozone dosing determination in wastewater | Ozone consumption is the main operating-cost variable. Once this publishes, ozone projects get a shared basis for quotation and guarantee. Expected within one to two years. |
| ISO/DIS 21910-1 (revision) | Particle size characterisation moves from one index to two | The revision itself is an admission that a single mean diameter does not describe a real distribution. We now name the measurement method whenever we quote a size. |
| ISO 4240 series | Environmental application: washing soil oil contamination with fine-bubble water | Soil remediation is a new application area. If it matures it will give brownfield projects a compliance path they currently lack. |
| GB/T 41914 series (China) | General principles still expanding | China is filling out its terminology and classification series. Wording on this site follows the Chinese standard where the two languages diverge. |
Four gaps — where no standard exists
This is the honest part of the picture. In each of these areas, a buyer has no standard to lean on and must rely on an acceptance test written for the project.
No product-performance standard for industrial wastewater equipment
Every published standard in this field is a test method — how to measure something — rather than a product standard that says what a device must achieve. A tender that asks for "compliance with the national standard" and quotes a product standard number for a nanobubble generator is quoting something that does not exist.
No national standard for aquaculture oxygenation
China has standards for the water, not for the oxygen delivery device. Buyers in this segment are therefore comparing brochures, which is exactly the situation that produces 30% claims with no control.
Membrane fouling control has no dedicated standard
ISO 20304-4:2026 covers antifouling performance testing for water treatment, which is the closest thing available. It is a test method, not a design rule, and it does not cover MBR scouring.
The United States has no nanobubble-specific standard
ASTM and EPA have nothing dedicated. US buyers rely on state discharge permits, vendor guarantees and third-party verification — which in practice means the acceptance test matters more than any citation.
How to use a standard number in a tender
- Cite it for the method, not the performance. "Particle size to be determined per ISO 21910-1" is valid. "Equipment certified to ISO 20480-1" is not — Part 1 is a vocabulary standard.
- Name the instrument. ISO/TR 23015 is a matrix of measurement techniques precisely because they do not agree with each other.
- Put the acceptance threshold in the contract, not the standard number. The standard tells you how to measure; only your contract can tell the supplier what counts as passing.
Source: ISO/TC 281 committee catalogue (iso.org/committee/4856666.html), the Chinese national standards platform (std.samr.gov.cn, TC 584), JSA and KATS catalogues, all read on 2026-10-25. Items whose status could not be confirmed against a primary catalogue are marked as such rather than guessed. The Chinese page carries the same dataset plus per-item notes on relevance for each standard.
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