SBIR Phase II: Room Temperature Medical Waste Treatment

This SBIR Phase II research develops a novel, reliable, affordable, technology for effective decontamination/sterilization of medical waste. The technology is based on an air/gas sterilant produced in a non-thermal plasma source powered by a standard microwave oven magnetron. The simplicity and the affordability of the technique to produce an effective gas sterilant capable of sterilizing a wide range of materials and surfaces at low-temperature and with low energy requirements provides technology suitable for a low cost decontamination/sterilization device for medical and dental offices/clinics. This technology is free of chemical residue, low maintenance, and simple in operation. The broader impact of this research is to improve the safety of doctors' offices and hosptials through on-site sterilization of biohazardous and infectious wastes. The technology provides a significant power saving and decreases the number of medical waste incinerators that contribute harmful emissions to the environment.