Investigation of sterilization by a microwave-generated low-temperature atmospheric pressure plasma jet

An investigation of sterilization by a low-temperature microwave-generated atmospheric pressure plasma jet (MAPPJ) is presented. Escherichia coli (E. coli), Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), and yeast Saccharomyces species (Saccharomyces sp.) at 1.0 x 10(3) and 1.0 x 10(4) cfu/mL dilutions are investigated and fungi tested experimentally. The MAPPJ is generated by several watt continuous-wave microwaves and Ar gas, and direct treatment of the bacteria by a programmable planar XY motorized translation stage. After several minutes of plasma treatment, the number of bacterial colonies was sufficiently reduced and found to be nearly zero, and bare ozone and nitrogen dioxide were observed. This investigation shows that plasma sterilization would be a novel application for solid-state microwave power sources.

Automated summary

An investigation of sterilization using a low-temperature microwave-generated atmospheric pressure plasma jet (MAPPJ) is presented. The study examined the effects of the plasma treatment on different bacteria and fungi, and found that the number of bacterial colonies was significantly reduced and almost eliminated after several minutes of treatment.