NATA Accredited Australian Laboratory Services.

LAF Technologies
is actively introducing the use of H202 Bio-decontamination into it’s wide range of contamination control equipment services. Using the latest equipment and factory trained procedures from Bioquell UK we are able to provide low temperature residue-free HPV technology to bio-decontaminate biological safety cabinets, CO2 incubators, pass through hatches, isolators, robotics as well a wide range of laboratory equipment.

Following the recent upgrading of formaldehyde to a category 1 known human carcinogen by the World Health Organisation’s
international agency for research intocancer, demands for a safer alternative have been growing.

For the first time there is a real alternative to formaldehyde, which is effective, faster and above all safer.

Key advantages of HPV Decontamination:

• Eliminates the need to use formaldehyde - a confirmed carcinogen, with all the associated health and safety issues
• HPV has excellent and proven efficacy against a broad range of bacteria (including spores), viruses and fungi
• HPV equipment technology ensures the equipment under decontamination remains at a negative pressure during procedure thus preventing the leakage of vapour into the laboratory
• Hydrogen peroxide vapour is catalytically converted to water and oxygen at the end of the procedures cycle - hence no residues to affect research or sensitive employees
• No need to vacate the laboratory – BIO-Decontamination can take place safely while work in the lab continues
• First rate material compatibility - no damage to electronics or other sensitive equipment
• HPV process is significantly faster (and safer) than formaldehyde.

Science

Hydrogen peroxide has always been recognised as a powerful bio decontamination agent, but has historically lacked a delivery system capable of turning this potential into a practical and reliable solution. As well as it’s efficacy, hydrogen peroxide vapour technology has two key advantages over alternatives for rooms, buildings and/or equipment.

Low temperature: The hydrogen peroxide vapour is produced in an air stream at approximately 65°C and introduced into an environment which does not require humidity or temperature pre-conditioning.

Residue free: Hydrogen peroxide breaks down in contact with UV light and organic material to it’s constituent components – water (humidity) and oxygen – hence there is no need for any post decontamination clean up. Coupling the above advantages with the speed of the process and the excellent materials compatibility provides a rapid, low temperature, residue-free solution to bio-burden reduction.
Over the past decade hydrogen peroxide has become the vapour phase high-level disinfectant of choice for pharmaceutical, biotech and
biomedical applications.

Hydrogen peroxide vapour (H202) is non-carcinogenic and has significant safety and efficacy advantages over other outdated techniques such as formaldehyde or peracetic acid fogging or the nebulising of toxic biocides. H202 vapour breaks down under catalytic action into water and oxygen, hence is environmentally friendly and it leaves absolutely no residues unlike many other biocides.

When the correct conditions have been reached, bio-inactivation is very rapid with D-values below two minutes so 6-log bio-burden reduction on spores is readily obtainable. H202 vapour is very effective against spore forming organisms such as bacteria and fungi and has a high level of lethality on yeast and virus. Independent research shows that H202 vapour is effective against anthrax spores (B. anthracis). Further information on the biological efficacy of H202 is detailed in a separate document, which is available upon request.

With use of Aldehydes becoming more unacceptable throughout the world due to efficacy and health and safety grounds, hydrogen peroxide vapour provides a safe and effective bio-decontamination alternative that achieves significant processing time advantages and a high level
of (residue-free) efficacy.

The Clarus S Suite

LAF Technologies provides Hydrogen Peroxide Vapour Decontamination Services using the Clarus S H202 gas generator, which is compact and mobile and can be easily moved around between locations. All LAF Technologies service personnel are fully trained in the gassing procedure and the associated safety requirements. The Clarus S suite has been designed to fulfil the market need for a compact, fast and effective system for bio-
decontaminating laboratory equipment. It is simple to set up and to connect to a range of equipment.

LAF Technologies has introduced the equipment bio-decontamination system, taking advantage of the latest developments in H202 gassing technology for the routine and emergency decontamination of enclosures, biological safety cabinets, incubators and other laboratory equipment.

There are three phases of the decontamination cycle, which are controlled by the Clarus S suite.

1. The Gassing Phase.

During the gassing phase, H202 is flash evaporated by the gas generator unit. The H202 vapour is then blown into the equipment by a fan within the vaporiser and distributed by a second fan. As the volume of vaporised H202 increases, micro-condensation forms on the equipment surfaces. Micro-condensation continues to gradually increase until all the H202 has been vaporised.

Another advantage of the H202 vapour gassing is that it does not damage sensitive electronic equipment, such as laptops, scales, thermometers,
timers and so on. This is due to the residue free condition at the end of the decontamination.

2. The Dwell Phase

Once all the H202 has been vaporised, the gas is left to settle onto any surfaces and be absorbed through any filters that may be present, which is known as the dwell phase. During this time, the vaporiser continues to operate in order to distribute the gas throughout the equipment, however no more H202 is pumped into the equipment. This phase is combined with the gassing phase, so is part of one phase.

3. Aeration

When the gassing phase and dwell phase end, the Clarus S suite will automatically switch into aeration mode. An alarm on the Clarus S control module will sound indicating that the Clarus S suite has gone into aeration mode and that action from an appropriate LAF Technologies service person will be required. When aeration begins, the Clarus S internal aeration unit will switch on.  At this point the pressure cap will be removed from the Clarus S external aeration unit to increase the airflow through the equipment. During aeration the H202 catalytically converts into it’s component parts, making it safe to exhaust.

Equipment

The Clarus S consists of three individual pieces of equipment which when linked and controlled together by the control panel carry out a complete bio-decontamination cycle. There are three phases of the decontamination cycle, which are controlled by the Clarus S suite.

Vaporiser - The vaporiser produces the hydrogen peroxide vapour and distributes it using an internal fan and an external distribution fan within the enclosure. Once all the hydrogen peroxide in the bottle has been vaporised it continues to circulate air to ensure continuing mixing of the vapour. The positioning of the vaporiser and the direction of the distribution fan is important to ensure vapour is distributed to all areas required.

Internal Catalyst - The internal catalyst is used during the aeration cycle when it helps in the conversion of the hydrogen peroxide gas into water and oxygen. The internal catalyst consists of a catalytic filter and a fan.

External Catalyst - The external catalyst performs two main functions. During the conditioning and gassing part of the cycle it holds the enclosure at a negative pressure and then during the aeration it converts the hydrogen peroxide vapour into water and oxygen. The external catalyst is always positioned outside the enclosure.

Control Panel - The control panel is used to control the three main pieces of equipment.

Equipment Cycle Times - BIOLOGICAL SAFETY CABINETS

Size	Chamber/Working Area	Maximum Cycle Time	Full-Filter De-Contamination	Maximum Cycle Time
0.9M/1.0M	10ml	2 hours	65ml	3 hours 15 minutes
1.2M	10ml	2 hours	65ml	3 hours 15 minutes
1.5M	10ml	2 hours	65ml	3 hours 15 minutes
1.8M	15ml	2 hours	100ml	4 hours 20 minutes
Above 1.8M	Consult Technical Services	Consult Technical Services	Consult Technical Services	Consult Technical Services

Incubator Cycle Times

Size	Chamber/Working Area	Maximum Cycle Time
Less than 1.0m3	10ml	2 hours
1.0m3 to 1.5m3	10ml	2 hours

LAFtechnologies - NATA Accredited Australian Laboratory Services.