JP3254234B2 - Containers and packages for UV sterilization - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a container package suitable for realizing an aseptic condition on the outer surface of a plastic container for housing foods, medicines, medical instruments and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In plastic containers (inner packaging materials) for storing foods, medicines, medical instruments, and the like, it is sometimes required to keep the outer surfaces of the containers in a sterile state. In such a case, after sealing in the inner packaging material, autoclaving together with the contents of the container, and then wrapping and sealing in another packaging material with a plastic film or sheet (outer packaging material), the ethylene oxide gas can be permeated as the outer packaging material; It is manufactured by a method of sterilizing ethylene oxide gas using a material (porous film or nonwoven fabric) that blocks microorganisms, a method of wrapping an inner wrapping material with an outer wrapping material, and then performing a high-pressure steam sterilization. However, in the above case, the possibility that the outer surface of the inner packaging material is contaminated by microorganisms before sterilization of the inner packaging material before wrapping with the outer packaging material cannot be ignored, and in such a case, the residual ethylene oxide gas becomes a problem. Although the above case is considered to be the most rational process, it is often difficult to use a versatile polymer as the inner or outer wrapping material. That is, soft polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene, ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer and polypropylene are usually used as the encapsulating material. These polymers have the advantage of being excellent in flexibility and transparency, but have a low softening point (low melting point), Because of the low glass transition point,
It cannot withstand sterilization conditions of 100 to 130 ° C., and tends to soften and increase the tackiness of the surface. Also, since the outer packaging material is required to have a bag-making property (heat sealing property), the inner surface layer (the layer that comes into contact with the outer surface of the inner packaging material) must be selected from polymers such as polyethylene and polypropylene in consideration of versatility. Because it cannot be obtained, fusion occurs at the contact surface between the inner packaging material and the outer packaging material during high-pressure steam sterilization, and it remains in a blocked state even after cooling, making it difficult or impossible to open (open) the operation. There's a problem.

[0003]

Under the circumstances described above, the present inventor has studied to provide a technique for industrially easily realizing a sterile state of the surface of the encapsulating material industrially.

[0004]

The object comprises a sealed plastic container (A) and a sealed film or sheet (B) enclosing the plastic container (A), and the outer surface of the plastic container (A). The layer and / or the inner surface of the film or sheet (B) contains an antibacterial agent, and the film or sheet (B) has a wavelength of 250 to
The problem is solved by the present invention, which is a container package for ultraviolet sterilization, which is capable of transmitting 260 nm.

Further, the plastic container (A) is made of a multilayer sheet comprising one or more members selected from the group consisting of polyethylene, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride and a polymer containing these as a main component. The film or sheet (B) is formed of one or more selected from the group consisting of polyethylene, ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer, ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer, polypropylene, nylon 6, nylon 66, and polymers containing these as a main component. It is preferably a multilayer body as a component.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail.

In the present invention, a combination of the introduction of an antibacterial agent and the provision of an ultraviolet ray transmitting ability is suitable for solving the problem, and a sealed plastic container (A) and a plastic container (A)
Comprising a sealed film or sheet (B) enclosing the film or sheet (B), wherein the outer surface layer of (A) and / or the inner surface layer of the film or sheet (B) contains an antibacterial agent, and the film or sheet (B) Has proposed an ultraviolet sterilizing container characterized by being capable of transmitting light having a wavelength of 250 to 260 nm.

[0008] Sterilization using an ultraviolet sterilization method which has been widely used in the past, and further sterilization with an antibacterial agent, the sterilization effect of the bacteria increases in order to specifically sterilize microorganisms, Sterilization can be performed reliably.

In the present invention, the antimicrobial agent means a chemical agent that inhibits or kills the growth of microorganisms, and includes quaternary ammonium salts, amphoteric surfactants, and organometallic compounds. Silver-substituted zeolite is the most suitable example in terms of antibacterial action and the like. The silver-substituted zeolite is a polymer obtained by substituting a part of metal ions of zeolite (aluminosilicate of alkali or alkaline earth metal) with silver ions as described in Vol. 39, p. 744. Yes (substitution rate is about 2 to 10%), and those having a particle diameter of about 0.1 to 10 μm, more preferably about 0.2 to 5 μm are used for the purpose of dispersing in a polymer.

Next, the plastic container (A) in the present invention is a container containing foods, medicines and the like, and is made of any polymer commonly used for these purposes, and is not particularly limited. When emphasis is placed on properties, high-pressure method low-density polyethylene, propylene, butene
1, linear low-density polyethylene, high-density polyethylene having α-olefins such as hexene-1, octene-1, and 4-methylpentene-1 as copolymer components, and ethylene acetic acid having a vinyl acetate content of 2 to 25% by weight. Vinyl copolymer,
Homopolypropylene, copolymerized polypropylene and di-
5 to 50 plasticizers such as 2-ethylhexyl phthalate
Vinyl chloride containing by weight is suitable, and the thickness is preferably 0.1 to 2 mm, more preferably 0.2 to 1.5.

In the present invention, a material that transmits light (ultraviolet light) having a wavelength of 250 to 260 nm is used for the film or sheet (B). This is because bacteria and cells have a strong sensitivity in the wavelength region, and ordinary ultraviolet sterilization is almost performed in this wavelength region.
To increase the bactericidal effect. Considering the irradiation efficiency of ultraviolet rays, the transmittance in this wavelength range is preferably 30% or more, and more preferably 50% or more.
% Or more. Polymers satisfying this requirement include polyethylene, ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer, polypropylene, ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer, nylon 6, nylon 66, and the like or polymers containing these as main components, in addition to the polyethylenes, ethylene vinyl acetate copolymers, and polypropylenes described in the aforementioned plastic container (A). And aliphatic polymers such as The presence of an aromatic component is not preferred because it significantly absorbs ultraviolet light in a wavelength range of 300 nm or less and reduces the transmittance. The film or sheet (B) is preferably as thin as possible within a range that satisfies mechanical strength and gas barrier properties from the viewpoint of improving ultraviolet transmittance, and is usually 5 to 200 μm, more preferably 10 to 150 μm. .

In the present invention, the above-mentioned antibacterial agent is present at least on the outer surface layer of the plastic container (A) or the inner surface layer of the film or sheet (B) because its action is exhibited by contact with microorganisms. do it. Since the action of the antibacterial agent is caused by contact with microorganisms, it need not be present in the inner surface layer of the plastic container (A) or the outer surface layer of the film or sheet (B). In addition, in order to avoid direct contact between the food or medicine and the antibacterial agent, and to maintain the ultraviolet transmittance of the film or sheet (B), the antibacterial agent is formed on the outer surface layer of the plastic container (A) or on the film or It is advantageous that it is present only in the inner surface layer of the sheet (B). For this reason, it is preferable that the plastic container (A) or the film or the sheet (B) take the form of a multilayer film or a multilayer sheet. It is conceivable that the polymer layer containing the agent forms only the outer surface layer of the plastic container (A) or the inner surface layer of the film or sheet (B). In this case, the antibacterial agent-containing layer preferably has a thickness of about 1 to 20 µ, more preferably about 2 to 10 µ. Although the amount of the antibacterial agent in the containing layer varies depending on the type, for example, in the case of silver-substituted zeolite, the content is preferably 0.1 to
10% by weight, more preferably 0.5 to 8% by weight.
When an antimicrobial agent is added to the inner surface layer of the film or sheet (B), it is needless to say that the amount should be determined in consideration of the ultraviolet transmittance of the entire film or sheet (B). Also, film or sheet (B)
The inner surface layer is also important in bag making (sealability), and it is preferable to select a polyethylene or polypropylene-based polymer.

The plastic container (A) and the film or sheet (B) in the present invention are produced by a generally known molding method such as a multilayer molding method, an injection molding method, an inflation method, a T-die method, a laminating method or a combination thereof. The antimicrobial agent is mixed and introduced in any of these steps before molding. Here, the distinction between a film and a sheet is not strict. Unstretched sheet,
The stretched product is referred to as a film.

The container of the present invention can be easily manufactured through the steps of sealing the plastic container (A) with its contents, cooling, wrapping it in a film or sheet (B), and heat sealing.

Known methods can also be applied to sterilization of the container of the present invention by ultraviolet irradiation. That is, the conditions are such that the UV irradiance is 500 to 30,000 μw / cm ² under a low-pressure mercury lamp (producing ultraviolet light having a wavelength of 254 nm). Irradiation conditions include the type of microorganisms present between the plastic container (A) and the film or sheet (B),
The amount is appropriately adjusted depending on the amount, the target sterilization level, the ultraviolet transmittance of the film or sheet (B), and the like.

The container of the present invention is intended to be applied to packaging materials for foods, medicines, medical instruments and the like, and particularly, physiological saline, electrolyte solution, dextran preparation, mannitol preparation,
It is suitable as a container for pharmaceutical liquids such as saccharide preparations and amino acid preparations. In addition, by introducing a polymer having excellent gas barrier properties and ultraviolet transmittance such as an ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer into the film or sheet (B), it is possible to simultaneously satisfy the aseptic condition and the prevention of deterioration of the contents.

[0017]

The present invention will be described more specifically with reference to the following examples.

(1) Plastic container (A): linear low-density polyethylene containing hexene-1 as a copolymer component (density 0.918 g / cm ³ , temperature 190 ° C., load 2.16)
The melt flow rate at 1.0 kg is 1.0) as an inner layer (thickness of 300 μm), and a uniform blend of the above polyethylene and silver zeolite (average particle diameter of 1.1 μm and silver substitution rate of 5%) particles as an outer layer (10 μm thickness) 150m
m were obtained by the inflation method (the extrusion temperature was 190 ° C., and the sheet immediately after extrusion was cooled with water at 15 ° C.). The sheet was cut to a length of 20 cm, heat-sealed to form a bag, filled with 500 ml of physiological saline, and heat-sealed. Table 1 shows the content of the silver-substituted zeolite in the inner layer.

(2) Sheet (B): The same as that used for the outer layer (thickness: 40 μ) of polypropylene having a melt flow rate of 2.5 at a temperature of 230 ° C. and a load of 5 kg, and the polypropylene and the silver-substituted zeolite ((A)) ) With a uniform diameter of 200 mm as an inner layer (thickness: 10 μm)
Was obtained by the inflation method (the extrusion temperature was 230 ° C., and the sheet immediately after extrusion was cooled with water at 10 ° C.). The content of the silver-substituted zeolite in the outer layer of the sheet and 250 to 2 measured using Shimadzu Corporation's self-recording spectrophotometer UV-300
Table 1 shows the transmittance of light in the 60 mm region (average transmittance at 250 nm and 260 nm).

(3) Preparation of a test container and irradiation with ultraviolet rays: The plastic container (A) was heated to 115 ° C. under a gauge pressure of 2.0.
autoclave at 30 kg / cm ² for 30 minutes.
After cooling to 0 ° C., a predetermined amount of bacteria was uniformly sprayed on a 5 cm × 5 cm square portion of the upper surface. Next, this plastic container (A) is vacuum-wrapped in a sheet (B) using a germicidal lamp GL-15 (main wavelength: 254 nm) manufactured by Matsushita Electric Works at a temperature of 3 sheets.
A predetermined amount of ultraviolet light was applied to the part where the bacteria were sprayed under the conditions of 0 ° C. and irradiance of 1,000 μW / cm ² . (The time required from spraying the bacteria to UV irradiation is within 10 minutes).

(4) Confirmation of effect: 3 days after irradiation in dark place
After leaving at 0 ° C for 12 hours, plastic container (A)
The number of viable bacteria existing between the sheet and the sheet (B) was measured. As shown in Table 2, the results show that the use of the sheet (B) in which silver zeolite is present and which can transmit ultraviolet light has a remarkably large bactericidal effect.

[0022]

[Table 1]

[0023]

[Table 2]

[0024]

As described above, the container of the present invention comprises a sealed plastic container (A) and a sealed film or sheet (B) enclosing the plastic container (A). Surface layer and / or
The inner surface of the film or sheet (B) contains an antimicrobial agent, and the film or sheet (B) has a wavelength of 250 to 2
Since it can transmit 60 nm light, it is easy to realize a sterile state between the inner packaging material and the outer packaging material by ultraviolet irradiation and the antibacterial action of an antibacterial agent, and is useful as a container for food, medicine, medical equipment, etc. The industrial value is extremely high, in combination with the ability to use a polymer material having properties as it is.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B65D 25/36 A61L 2/26 B65D 81/28

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A plastic container (A) comprising a sealed plastic container (A) and a sealed film or sheet (B) enclosing the plastic container (A), wherein an outer surface layer and / or a film or a sheet of the plastic container (A) is provided. A container and package for ultraviolet sterilization, wherein the inner surface of the sheet (B) contains an antibacterial agent and the film or sheet (B) can transmit light having a wavelength of 250 to 260 nm.