Industries that use Autoclaves

An autoclave is a device used to sterilize items by subjecting them to high temperatures in a pressurized environment.  Autoclaves are used in diverse fields from medicine and mushrooms to rocket science! They make procedures safer and products better.

Here are a few industries that put this sterilizing method to good use.

1. Medical, Dental, and Veterinary Offices

Autoclaves kill germs, bacteria, and viruses. So, they are ideal for cleaning medical equipment that is reused on other patients. Items that are typically autoclaved are surgical or dental instruments and glassware for lab specimens, but what makes an autoclave more useful than a standard hot-air oven is that it can disinfect not only metal instruments but also more fragile substances that could not withstand high temperatures in hot air ovens. These include rubber and fabric (for scrubs, exam gowns, and human and animal bedding).

2. Body Modification Studios

For all the same reasons that autoclaves contribute to safety in medical environments, they are useful for tattooing and piercing applications. Needles and clamps can be sterilized and used again without concern for disease transmission. Piercing jewellery is sterilized for safety (even new jewellery can pick up bacteria that may be dangerous in a fresh piercing) before insertion.

3. Industrial Manufacturing

Very large and highly specialized autoclaves, many more than four feet wide, have been designed for industrial use. The autoclave is a critical element in vulcanizing rubber; high heat and pressure realign the polymer chains in the material to make it elastic and durable. This is known as a thermoplastic process, or making something moldable by applying heat. Using extremely high temperatures and pressures high enough to keep water in its liquid state (at this extreme, the autoclave is referred to as a hydroclave).

4. Mycology

Autoclaves are used in the study and growth of fungi. Strains of mushrooms, both edible and toxic, are carefully prepared in sterile dishes and then autoclaved to remove any undesirable bacteria. The steam heat and pressure do not affect the mushroom spores, which then can be fruited without fear of contamination from other sources.

5. Pre-treatment of Hazardous Medical Waste

Finally, an autoclave is an elegant solution to the problem of medical waste that carries dangerous pathogens. Bedding, wound dressings, gloves, and any material that has come into contact with a diseased person or animal can be sterilized and then disposed of like any other waste. This can include cages and bedding from laboratory test animals as well as human medical waste. Unlike other methods, it poses no risk of vaporizing pathogens into the air, which makes the sterilizing process much safer and less work for workers.

In its simplest expression, an autoclave is just an industrial dishwasher, but one that is capable of washing some dishes that are quite literally out of this world. So the next time you see a body piercing or a NASA rocket launch, just remember: it was the use of an autoclave that helped make it happen.