Characteristics of nonequilibrium plasma flow and its sterilization efficacy in a tube at atmospheric pressure

Takehiko Sato, Osamu Furuya, Tatsuyuki Nakatani

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

5 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A nonequilibrium plasma flow produced uniformly in a tube was developed in this paper. The plasma was generated in polyvinyl chloride tube, 3 mm in inner diameter and 100 mm in length, between a wire electrode, 0.2 mm in diameter, and a grounded flat electrode located at the bottom of the tube. We investigated the spectrum, temperature, and ozone concentration of this plasma flow and its sterilization efficacy against Geobacillus stearothermophilus. The temperature in the tube showed uniformity along the wire electrode and increases as applied voltage was increased. With a wire electrode temperature of 337 K at a peak-to-peak applied voltage of 10 kV in the sine wave and a frequency of 6 kHz, sterilization of 105 cells was obtained. This result suggests the potential of the application of plasma flow rather than ethylene oxide for sterilization of the inner wall of tubes, such as catheters and artificial blood vessels.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)44-49
Number of pages6
JournalIEEE Transactions on Industry Applications
Volume45
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2009

Keywords

  • Air
  • Atmospheric pressure
  • Dielectric barrier discharge (DBD)
  • Low temperature
  • Plasma flow
  • Sterilization
  • Tube

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Control and Systems Engineering
  • Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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