AVS 51st International Symposium
    Plasma Science and Technology Friday Sessions
       Session PS+BI-FrM

Paper PS+BI-FrM4
Plasma Sterilisation and De-pyrogenation of Surfaces: Review and Analysis of Mechanisms

Friday, November 19, 2004, 9:20 am, Room 213C

Session: Plasmas in Bioscience
Presenter: P. Colpo, EU-JRC-IHCP, Italy
Authors: F. Rossi, European Commission Joint Research Centre, Italy
R. De Mitri, European Commission Joint Research Centre, Italy
M. Hasiwa, European Commission Joint Research Centre, Italy
S. Bobin, Biomatech, France
R. Eloy, Biomatech, France
T. Hartung, European Commission Joint Research Centre, Italy
P. Colpo, EU-JRC-IHCP, Italy
Correspondent: Click to Email
Mechanisms of plasma sterilisation are reviewed and analysed in terms of radiation induced desorption, UV radiation effects and etching. Different plasma discharges are analysed with Optical Emission Spectroscopy in order to find optimum conditions of UV emission and radicals production. Those effects are compared and related to effective sterilisation and depyrogenation rates obtained from the literature and experimentally on Bacillus subtilis and LPS. It is shown that UV emission is the major contribution for sterilisation and chemical etching for depyrogenation. SEM analysis of spores at different times of treatment show the degradation of the outer shell, as well as size and coverage reduction as the treatment duration increases. Effects of plasma on pyrogen is illustrated by AFM and ToF SIMS. A strategy for optimised sterilisation and depyrogenation treatment is proposed.