Published 4 issues per year
ISSN Print: 1947-5764
ISSN Online: 1947-5772
Indexed in
Large-Volume Plasma Device with Internally Mounted Face-Type Planar Microwave Launchers for Low-Temperature Sterilization
ABSTRACT
In this study, large-volume microwave excited surface-wave and volume-wave plasmas were investigated for low temperature sterilization of medical instrument. The two planar microwave launchers, each supported by a 1.5-kW magnetron, were face-to-face installed inside the vacuum chamber of plasma device for homogeneous sterilization. The spatial distributions of plasma discharges in the surface-wave and volume-wave modes were characterized under various discharge conditions using single or double microwave launchers of the experimental setup. The electron density increased to about twice in the case of double launchers as compared to single launcher without any microwave interference between two launchers. With this plasma setup, we confirmed the successful inactivation of Tyvek-wrapped spore-forming bacteria at temperatures less than 70°C and within 70 to 80 min with time-modulated surface-wave and volume-wave plasma, respectively.
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VASSALLO Espedito, PEDRONI Matteo, SILVETTI Tiziana, MORANDI Stefano, BRASCA Milena, Inactivation of Staphylococcus aureus by the synergistic action of charged and reactive plasma particles, Plasma Science and Technology, 22, 8, 2020. Crossref