Title :
Characteristics of Nonequilibrium Plasma Flow and Its Sterilization Efficacy in a Tube at Atmospheric Pressure
Author :
Sato, Takehiko ; Furuya, Osamu ; Nakatani, Tatsuyuki
Author_Institution :
Inst. of Fluid Sci., Tohoku Univ., Sendai
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 kVpp 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.
Keywords :
atmospheric pressure; pipe flow; plasma flow; Geobacillus stearothermophilus; atmospheric pressure; frequency 6 kHz; nonequilibrium plasma flow; ozone concentration; size 0.2 mm; size 100 mm; size 3 mm; sterilization efficacy; temperature 337 K; tube; wire electrode; Atmospheric-pressure plasmas; Catheters; Electrodes; Frequency; Plasma applications; Plasma properties; Plasma temperature; Plasma waves; Voltage; Wire; Air; atmospheric pressure; dielectric barrier discharge (DBD); low temperature; plasma flow; sterilization; tube;
Journal_Title :
Industry Applications, IEEE Transactions on
DOI :
10.1109/TIA.2008.2009660