JPH0928774A - Sterilization method and device therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sterilization method and a device without using a large scale pressure container, etc., and capable of facilitating safety management, etc., efficiently and economically injection water into a vacuum container with a small water hard without deteriorating a vacuum pump and attaching a filter function on a feed tube with low pressure. SOLUTION: In a sterilizing method to irradiate an object 4 to be sterilized with an infrared-region radioactive ray while being stuck with water, the object 4 to be sterilized is housed in the vacuum container 1, and the water is supplied to the vacuum container while evacuating the vacuum container 1.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sterilization method and apparatus, and more particularly to a sterilization method and apparatus using water and infrared radiation (so-called infrared, hereinafter the same).

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In hospitals and the like, sterilizers are used for disinfecting and sterilizing used scalpels and other medical instruments. In a conventional sterilizer, a device to be sterilized is placed in a pressure vessel containing water, heated to a high pressure to evaporate the water to a high temperature of 121 ° C., and sterilized for about 20 minutes.

On the other hand, the inventors of the present invention discovered the bactericidal action of water and infrared radiation, and gave a lecture and made a presentation on this (Annual Conference of the Institute for Ancient Cultural Heritage Science, June 1994).
4-5th a month). The characteristics of the bactericidal action using water and infrared radiation are (1) sterilization can be performed without using chemicals, secondary pollution can be prevented, and (2) local treatment is possible.
Being able to save energy and process in a short time, (3)
It is possible to utilize the long-wavelength characteristic of infrared radiation, that is, the transparency, and (4) do not cause a chemical change in the object. The principle of such bactericidal action by water and infrared radiation is considered to be that bacterial cells are destroyed by water molecules excited by infrared radiation, but details are under study.

As such a sterilizing apparatus using water and infrared radiation, a water container is housed together with an object to be sterilized in a vacuum container connected to a vacuum pump, and water and the object to be sterilized are put in the vacuum container. A vacuum device has been proposed in which this vacuum container is evacuated and then irradiated with infrared radiation.

[0005]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional sterilizer, since high pressure steam is used, a pressure vessel must be used, which requires a large scale and requires careful attention in handling to prevent accidents. In addition, it was troublesome to deal with safety management and legal regulations. In addition, energy is required to remove the latent heat of vaporization of water, power consumption increases, and the sterilization process takes a long time.Because the sterilization process is performed at high temperatures, plastics that do not have heat resistance are deformed or deteriorated. Therefore, sterilization could not be performed.

On the other hand, in a conventionally proposed sterilizer using water and infrared radiation in a vacuum container, the vacuum container is evacuated by a vacuum pump while the water is contained in the vacuum container. A large amount of water is contained in the air, and this water promotes deterioration of the vacuum pump, which may reduce pump function and service life. Further, when water is injected into the vacuum container through a water supply pipe or the like, if it is attempted to send purified water through a filter or the like into the vacuum container at normal pressure, a large water supply pressure is required due to the pressure loss of the filter. .

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art. It is possible to easily perform safety management without using a large-scale pressure vessel or the like, and efficiently operate with a small head pressure without degrading the vacuum pump. It is an object of the present invention to provide a sterilization method and device that can economically and efficiently pour water into a vacuum container and add a filter function to a water supply pipe at a low pressure.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, in a sterilization method of irradiating infrared radiation in a state where water is attached to an object to be sterilized,
There is provided a sterilization method characterized in that the sterilization target is housed in a vacuum container, and water is supplied into the vacuum container while the vacuum container is evacuated.

The sterilizing apparatus for carrying out the method of the present invention as described above comprises a vacuum container for containing an object to be sterilized, a vacuum pump for evacuating the vacuum container, and supplying water into the vacuum container. And an electron irradiation device for irradiating the object to be sterilized with infrared radiation.

[0010]

Function: Before the water is injected into the vacuum container, the inside of the vacuum container is decompressed by the vacuum pump. In this depressurized state, water is injected into the vacuum container through the water supply pipe. Since there is little water in the air that is evacuated before water injection, it has less adverse effect on the vacuum pump and suppresses pump deterioration and functional deterioration. Further, since the inside of the container is in a depressurized state at the time of pouring water, it is possible to feed water with a small pressure, and it is possible to sufficiently supply water even if there is a pressure loss in the filter or the like.

[0011]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a sterilizer according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a flow chart of the method of the present invention. An electron irradiation device 2 for generating and radiating infrared electromagnetic waves is provided in the vacuum container 1. As the electron irradiation device 2, a known infrared radiation emitting device can be used. As an example, it is possible to use an electron irradiation device that uses a metal conductor as a radiation surface and applies a weak printing voltage to the radiation surface to emit free electrons as infrared electromagnetic waves.
In this case, in order to obtain a high electromagnetic wave absorptivity for the sterilization target, the wavelength of the radiated electromagnetic wave is about 3.6 to 7.0 μm,
The frequency is preferably 1 to 4 × 10 ⁵ .

A plurality of such electron irradiation devices 2 may be arranged side by side in the vacuum container 1, for example, in an annular shape. A support base 3 is provided in the vacuum container 1 at the irradiation position of the electron irradiation device 2, and an object 4 to be sterilized is placed on the support base 3. The support base 3 or the electron irradiation device 2 may be configured to be movable or rotatable with respect to each other so that the sterilization target 4 on the support base 3 is uniformly irradiated with infrared radiation.
In addition, the support base 3 has a shape or a material having many openings such as a mesh or a grid so that the radiant light in the infrared region can entirely hit the sterilization target 4 and the water vapor can uniformly adhere to the whole. Is desirable.

The vacuum container 1 is connected to a vacuum pump 7 to evacuate the inside of the container 1 as indicated by an arrow A. A water supply pipe 11 connected to the water tank 8 is connected to the vacuum container 1.
A valve 9 and a filter 10 are provided on the water supply pipe 11.

When using the sterilizer having the above-mentioned structure, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, first, the lid or inlet (not shown) of the vacuum container 1 is opened and the sterilization target 4 is placed on the support base 3 (step S1). Next, the vacuum pump 7 is driven to evacuate the inside of the vacuum container 1 (step S2). With the pressure in the vacuum container 1 thus reduced, the valve 9 is opened and water is injected into the vacuum container 1 through the water supply pipe 11 (step S3). By supplying water in the state where the inside of the vacuum container 1 is depressurized to the atmospheric pressure or less as described above, the evaporation action of water becomes active, and the water spontaneously becomes steam at room temperature to enter the inside of the vacuum container 1. Fill up. The water vapor uniformly contacts the periphery of the sterilization target 4 on the support base 3 and adheres to the surface as very fine water. In this state, the sterilization target 4 is irradiated with infrared electromagnetic waves by the electron irradiation device 2 (step S4). At this time, the support base 3 (or the electron irradiation device 2)
You may irradiate an infrared electromagnetic wave, rotating. Bacteria are killed in a short time by such irradiation with infrared electromagnetic waves. According to the experiment, E. coli was killed in about 3 seconds, Staphylococcus was killed in about 9 seconds, and molds were killed in several minutes at room temperature.

An auxiliary heater may be used in combination to accelerate evaporation of water in the vacuum container 1.

[0016]

As described above, in the present invention, the vacuum container is evacuated before injecting water into the vacuum container, and water is injected in a depressurized state. Therefore, at the time of vacuum evacuation, since the inside of the vacuum container is not filled with water, the amount of water contained in the air to be evacuated is small, and deterioration of the pump and deterioration of function due to moisture in the air are suppressed. Further, since the inside of the container is in a depressurized state at the time of pouring water, it is possible to feed water with a small pressure, and it is possible to sufficiently supply water even if there is a pressure loss in the filter or the like. Therefore, it is possible to supply sufficiently purified water with a small-scale water supply facility or a small amount of electric power, and it is possible to improve the sterilization effect and reduce the cost. Further, by using a vacuum device having a relatively simple configuration and easy to handle and manage, uniform and reliable sterilization can be performed without requiring heating power, etc., without causing secondary pollution or chemical change,
It is possible to sterilize even plastics that do not have heat resistance without deteriorating or deforming, achieving highly reliable sterilization and saving energy and reducing costs.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a sterilizer according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart of a sterilization method according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1: vacuum container, 2: electron irradiation device, 3: support, 4: sterilization target, 7: vacuum pump, 8: water tank, 9: valve, 10: filter, 11: water supply pipe.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A sterilization method of irradiating infrared radiation in a state in which moisture is adhered to an object to be sterilized, wherein the object to be sterilized is housed in a vacuum container, and the vacuum is evacuated in the vacuum container. A sterilization method comprising supplying water into a container. 2. A vacuum container for containing an object to be sterilized, a vacuum pump connected to the vacuum container, water injection means for supplying water into the vacuum container, and infrared radiation for the object to be sterilized. A sterilization device for carrying out the method according to claim 1, comprising an electronic irradiation device for irradiating the.