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A crucial and necessary process in healthcare facilities is sterilization, or the process that removes (deactivates) all life forms, including viruses, fungi, bacteria, and prions, from objects, surfaces, and fluids. Nowadays, a couple of methods have this purpose, which include high heat (heat sterilization), chemical usage, filtration, high pressure, and other physical and chemical procedures. Relying on sterilization is not only a part of healthcare but also of Research and Development (R&D) laboratories focusing on medicine, as well as biotech.
The most widely-used method presents hot air sterilization. With the proper equipment, a high-temperature environment is achieved that can sterilize medical devices and instruments. Hence, here is when the importance of sterilizing ovens is recognized.
When using industrial ovens for this purpose, there are two sterilization methods available – a dry heat process or a steam heat process. Both of them allow a safe, reliable, rapid, and effective sterilization that answers the demanding requirements of medical R&D and healthcare. The dry heat method uses hot air that meets the sample, which is inside the chamber. This sample is heated up to the pre-set temperature for a pre-set time period. Samples reach a minimum temperature of 320 °F (160 °C) using normal pressure for a minimum of two hours, with a possibility for quicker sterilization with higher temperatures if the sample is allowed. With the dry heat process, all life forms, such as bacteria, are dehydrated and burned by oxidation.
Furthermore, the dry heat process does not present an issue for medical materials that can erode or be destroyed by hot steam sterilization. Moreover, this is the most cost-effective method.
On the other hand, the second method uses hot steam instead of hot air that for a set time period, which is injected into the pressurized autoclave. The most significant advantage in comparison to the dry heat methods is the sterilization time, as the steam heat process is considerably quicker. Additionally, this is the only method for sterilizing flammable materials in order to avoid combustion if dry-heated. Microorganisms are killed by protein coagulation caused by heat.
However, a disadvantage may present the effectiveness of the sterilization, as some organisms are resistant to steam heat irrelatively of the temperature levels. Consequently, depending on the samples that will be sterilized, either dry heat or a steam heat process is applied. Are you interested in other technology articles with topics related to the manufacturing industry? Do you want to know more about sterilizing ovens? Learn about sterilizing ovens with premium quality featuring different chamber sizes and temperature abilities, and explore a wide assortment of sterilizing ovens, in addition to many other interesting articles regarding thermal processing technology
