The use of plasma to clean or sterilize items can be particularly advantageous for items that cannot be readily washed or cleaned by standard methods. The toxicity and complications generating sufficient plasma makes it hard to use for such purposes. The subject invention addresses the problem by generating a minimal amount of highly reactive plasma to sterilize an item. This is achieved by reducing the amount of space and ambient air around and within the item. In this way, the plasma generated fills only the required volume of the item to be cleaned and the plasm is directed at the object, not directed at or released into non-target areas.

Articles and methods for preparing a surface for obtaining a patient sample, such as blood, are generally provided. In some embodiments, the methods involve wiping a surface of skin of a patient in preparation for obtaining a sample (e.g., a blood sample) from the patient. In some embodiments, the methods involve wiping the surface of the skin with two or more wipes. For instance, the surface of the skin may be wiped with a first wipe comprising a surfactant and a second wipe comprising an antiseptic solution. Advantageously, the use of a first wipe including a surfactant followed by a second wipe may remove a higher amount of certain contaminants (e.g., proteins, bacteria, viruses) from the surface of the skin as compared to the use of a single wipe or by hand-washing alone.

A system and method for cleaning, rinsing, and sanitizing a container is disclosed. The system has a sanitizing agent chamber for storing a sanitizing agent, the one or more solution chambers in fluid communication with the container, a pump in fluid commination with the sanitizing agent, wherein the pump is in communication with a gas, and at least one spray nozzle fluidly connected to the at least one solution chamber via a conduit positioned within the container, wherein the spray nozzle comprises a housing inside which the sanitizing agent is mixed at pressure with the gas to disperse the sanitizing agent and gas mixture into the container for sanitizing the container.

A sterilization, disinfection, sanitization, or decontamination system having a chamber defining a region, and a generator for creating a free radical effluent with reactive oxygen, nitrogen, and other species and/or a vaporizer. A closed loop circulating system without a free-radical destroyer is provided for supplying the mixture of free radicals from the generator mixed with the hydrogen peroxide solution in the form of the effluent to the chamber. The system is used in sterilizing, disinfecting, sanitizing, or decontaminating items in the chamber or room and, with a wound chamber, in treating wounds on a body. The wound chamber may be designed to maintain separation from wounds being treated. Various embodiments can control moisture to reduce or avoid unwanted condensation. Some embodiments can be incorporated into an appliance having a closed space, such as a washing machine. Some embodiments may include a residual coating device that deposits a bactericidal coating on sterilized items.

The present disclosure relates to methods and system for disinfecting surfaces within an area by forming peracids in a reaction layer in situ on the surfaces to be disinfected. Aqueous compositions comprising peracid reactant compounds, particularly hydrogen peroxide and acetic acid, are sequentially dispersed into the area, preventing peracids from being formed until the two peracid reactant compounds contact each other on the surface to be disinfected. Additionally, aqueous compositions containing peracid reactant compounds can further comprise ethanol to both decrease the surface tension of the droplets and enhance the reactants' biocidal activity. Peracid reactant compounds can be sequentially dispersed as electrostatically-charged droplets, so that droplets of a first aqueous composition containing at least one peracid reactant compound are dispersed with a polarity opposite that of a subsequently-applied second aqueous composition containing at least one peracid reactant compound, driving formation of a peracid on the surface in situ.

Methods and systems for temperature-controlled, on-site generation of peracids, namely peroxycarboxylic acids and peroxycarboxylic acid forming compositions are disclosed. In particular, methods for using an adjustable biocide formulator or generator system overcome the limitations of temperature on the kinetics of the peracid generation and/or peracid decomposition inside an adjustable biocide formulator or generator system. The methods include the controlling of the temperature of at least one raw starting material, namely water, to improve upon methods of on-site generation of peracids. The methods allow for the generation of user-selected chemistry without regard to the ambient temperatures of the raw starting materials and/or the biocide formulator or generator system.

The present disclosure relates to methods and system for disinfecting surfaces within a volumetric space by forming peracids in a reaction layer in situ directly on the surfaces to be disinfected. Particularly, a peroxide compound and an organic acid are sequentially dispersed into the volumetric space, preventing peracids from being formed until the two reactants contact each other on the surface to be disinfected. In some embodiments, any of the dispersed aqueous compositions can optionally be electrostatically charged. Additionally, a system for sequentially dispersing the peracid reactant compounds by electrostatic spraying is provided.

A method of disinfecting a fluid circuit of a thermal control for delivering temperature controlled fluid to at least one patient therapy device comprises the steps of providing an aqueous mixture comprising a disinfectant and circulating the aqueous mixture in the thermal control unit to disinfect the fluid circuit. The disinfectant comprises free-chlorine, a phenol, hydrogen peroxide (H.sub.2O.sub.2), or combinations thereof. If the disinfectant comprises free-chlorine, the free-chlorine is provided by a chlorinated isocyanurate (e.g. sodium dichloroisocyanurate; NaDCC). In addition, the free-chlorine is present in the aqueous mixture in an amount of at least about 100 parts per million (ppm). If the disinfectant comprises the phenol, the phenol is natural (e.g. thymol). In addition, the phenol is present in the aqueous mixture in an amount of at least about 10,000 ppm. If utilized, H.sub.2O.sub.2 is present in the aqueous mixture in an amount of at least about 5,000 ppm.

Methods of inactivating microbiological contamination described herein use a textile or membrane which can generate a contamination-inactivating amount of ozone or a reactive oxygen species. The textile or membrane includes first and second conductive layers and at least one ion conductive or porous intermediate layer positioned between the first and second conductive layers. The textile or membrane can form part of a protective face mask, for example a medical or surgical face mask. A voltage effective to generate a microbiological contamination-inactivating amount of the inactivating species is applied across the intermediate layer of the textile or membrane.

A method for treating open cut edges of a packaging sleeve, blank or web material of a packaging material rolled up into a roll, in particular a composite cardboard/plastics material, by applying or introducing a disinfectant-containing treatment agent to or into the outer region of the cut edges. To provide a particularly resource-efficient composite packaging and a production method required for this purpose, it is proposed that at least some of the treatment agent is not applied directly to the cut edges, but that a load carrier is loaded, which load carrier absorbs the treatment agent so that an actively sterilising atmosphere which is created then acts on the open cut edges of the packaging sleeve, blank or web material and performs the desired sterilisation. The invention also relates to a packaging material, to a combipack produced therefrom and to a container for receiving the packaging material.