Using Ultrasonic Cleaners to Provide an Effective Sterilization Process

Medical devices, instruments, and equipment designed for repeated use have to be cleaned and sterilized after each patient.

Traditional cleaning usually consists of manual scrubbing and wiping together with steam cleaning. Sterilization then takes place at high temperatures in an autoclave. However, more modern medical devices and tools usually include electronics and other temperature-sensitive components. They may also have interior crevices and complex shapes that are hard to clean. Some devices are fragile and may be damaged by manual cleaning or have delicate coatings that are easily scratched when scrubbed.

Ultrasonic cleaners for medical instruments are the better alternative to traditional cleaning methods. Read the article “Why the Sterilization Process Requires an Ultrasonic Cleaner” by Medicanix. They explain how ultrasonic cleaners clean these instruments effectively while avoiding issues with heat and handling.

But ultrasonic cleaners for medical instruments, by themselves, do not sterilize the parts to be cleaned. Adding disinfectant to the cleaning solution can result in sterile parts. The key to a successful cleaning is using the right ultrasonic cleaner for a specific cleaning application and the right amount of disinfectant for parts that are sterile and completely clean.

Ultrasonic cleaners can gently remove contamination without using heat (depending on the parts to be cleaned). They work by using microscopic cavitation bubbles in the cleaning solution to dislodge contaminants from the underlying surfaces. Ultrasonic waves in the cleaning solution generate the bubbles, which form and collapse in time with the ultrasonic frequency. When they collapse, the bubbles release tiny jets of cleaning solution that hit the parts to be cleaned and wash away the contaminants.

This process takes place wherever cleaning solution is present, even on complex shapes and inside interior crevices, inside tubes, along hinges, and in dead-end holes.

One of the great things about ultrasonic cleaners for medical applications and tools is they can clean gently at room temperature. The cleaning intensity can also be adjusted to match the fragility of the medical parts to be cleaned and temperature-sensitive electronics don’t suffer heat damage.

With ultrasonic cleaners, there’s no need for scrubbing or heating, both of which would otherwise damage fragile and heat-sensitive medical tools and devices. Kaijo’s experience building ultrasonic cleaners, along with their in-house expertise, makes them the best choice for working with medical facilities for their ultrasonic cleaner needs.

Our complete article, Using Ultrasonic Cleaners to Provide an Effective Sterilization Process, explains further. After reading the article, contact Kaijo by email at info@kaijo-shibuya.com or by calling 408-675-5575 if you have questions or would like to set up a free consultation to discuss your ultrasonic cleaner requirements.

Why Ultrasonic Cleaners Are Essential to Medical Manufacturers

Modern medical equipment incorporates sensitive components such as electronics, sensors, and optical fiber. Because of the way they are constructed, traditional cleaning and sterilizing methods can’t often be used in cleaning them.

Manual scrubbing can remove heavy contamination but can cause scratches to certain devices such as sensors, optical devices, and other fragile equipment. Some electronics are sensitive to heat, and therefore cannot stand high temperatures from hot steam. Devices with complicated shapes, hinges, threaded holes, and interior surfaces are hard to clean by traditional cleaning methods alone.

Ultrasonic cleaners provide the best alternative to traditional cleaning methods to remove contaminants without using chemicals, manual scrubbing, or high temperatures. They can do effective cleaning performance for both robust parts and delicate parts, as long as the configurations are adjusted accordingly.

Medical ultrasonic cleaners work by creating microscopic bubbles in the cleaning solution. As the ultrasonic sound waves pass through the cleaning tank, the bubbles form and burst in tune with the ultrasonic frequency. When the bubble bursts, it produces a tiny but powerful jet that can dislodge contaminants from the surface of the part to be cleaned.

The ultrasonic cleaning system has to have enough power to fill the cleaning tank with ultrasonic waves. Ultrasonic cleaners can be configured to deliver strong cleaning performance for durable and robust parts or gentle cleaning to fragile parts. Low frequencies create comparatively large bubbles and deliver a powerful cleaning action. High frequencies, on the other hand, produce smaller bubbles and weaker jets, providing a gentler cleaning action. Choosing the right frequency matches the cleaning power to the medical equipment to be cleaned.

Ultrasonic cleaners can clean parts and devices with complex shapes, interior holes or along crevices. While medical ultrasonic cleaners do not sterilize, adding a disinfectant to the cleaning solution renders the clean parts sterile. As modern medical equipment gets more difficult to clean, ultrasonic cleaners are the ideal solution for the manufacturers of medical equipment.

Learn more about Kaijo’s ultrasonic cleaning systems by reading the complete article, Why Ultrasonic Cleaners Are Essential to Medical Manufacturers. Call Kaijo Shibuya at 408-675-5575 to set up a free consultation to discuss your cleaning requirements or email info@kaijo-shibuya.com.

Incorporating Megasonic Cleaners into Large Processing Systems

Environmental regulations impose restrictions on the use of aggressive chemicals commonly used in large processing systems, resulting in more stringent production part cleaning requirements.

Manufacturing lines often include cleaning steps to prepare parts for subsequent processing. Cleaning may include manual scrubbing, pressure washing, and soaking the parts in hot chemical baths. However manual scrubbing and pressure washing don’t guarantee thorough cleaning and may even damage the most fragile parts. Some parts used in modern products may be temperature-sensitive that could be damaged by hot chemical baths.

Semiconductor manufacturers use large processing systems in processing silicon wafers. Wafers have to be cleaned between process steps to reduce possible particle contamination that will affect the quality of devices produced. Cleaning silicon wafers are usually carried out using baths that contain harsh and aggressive chemicals.

Megasonic cleaning systems make an ideal alternative for removing contaminants from surfaces of parts that are being cleaned without manual scrubbing or the use of harsh chemicals.

In megasonic cleaning, the process can take place at room temperature and is completely safe, requiring no additional operator safety measures. No special support equipment is needed, and the cleaners work without the need for constant operator monitoring.

Megasonic cleaning systems clean parts by using very high frequency sound waves. These sound waves create microscopic cavitation bubbles when the sound waves pass through the cleaning solution. The scrubbing action of the bubbles, as they form and burst, dislodges contaminants, and allows them to be rinsed away. This cleaning mechanism is especially effective for stubborn microscopic particles that can cause semiconductor component defects. Incorporating the megasonic cleaning method produces silicon wafers that have fewer contaminating particles.

For manufacturers that want to reduce the use of expensive and toxic cleaning chemicals while improving the performance of their cleaning stations, megasonic cleaners can also be incorporated into larger processing systems to provide an effective solution.

One area that that megasonic cleaners are incorporated into large processing systems is in wet bench chemical stations used by semiconductor manufacturers. Incorporating megasonic cleaning systems into the semiconductor production line reduces chemical use and improves cleaning performance. Megasonic cleaners work mechanically to remove contaminants from surfaces of silicon wafers.

For more details read the complete article, Incorporating Megasonic Cleaners into Large Processing Systems. Contact Kaijo Shibuya at 808-675-5575 to set up a free consultation or  email info@kaijo-shibuya.com.

How Ultrasonic Cleaners Are Used for Engine Block Cleaning

Cleaning engine blocks with traditional methods can be difficult and time-consuming. Plus, they do not guarantee thorough cleaning. The use of ultrasonic technology to remove heavy surface grease and dirt from part surfaces is an attractive alternative to these traditional cleaning methods.

Automotive ultrasonic cleaners work by generating microscopic bubbles in the cleaning solution. The bubbles form and collapse in tune with the ultrasonic frequency. When they collapse, they create a tiny but energetic jet that strikes the engine block surface and dislodges deposits.

Low frequencies create comparatively larger cavitation bubbles and correspondingly powerful jets. The bubbles’ powerful cleaning action is suitable for robust parts with hard surfaces such as engine blocks.

Higher frequencies, on the other hand, create smaller cavitation bubbles and a gentler cleaning action. This makes these bubbles suitable for cleaning automotive parts with softer surfaces or delicate surface coatings to avoid pitting.

To clean the large automotive parts such as engine blocks, the parts have to be completely submerged in the cleaning solution. A suitable ultrasonic cleaning tank will hold the engine block with an allowance of several inches to facilitate the proper circulation of the cleaning solution and the cavitation bubbles, which form everywhere the cleaning solution can penetrate, even inside cavities and threaded holes. The complex shapes and surfaces that make an engine block hard to clean with traditional methods are easily cleaned by the cavitation bubbles in the ultrasonic cleaner.

Since automotive ultrasonic cleaners can quickly and efficiently remove heavy deposits from engine blocks and other automotive parts, they can provide significant benefits to automotive restoration and maintenance shops that use them. If they transition to ultrasonic technology, shops can achieve better cleaning performance, reduced costs, increased efficiency and a safer working environment.

For more details read the complete article titled “How Ultrasonic Cleaners Are Used for Engine Block Cleaning”. If you have questions or you would like to set up a free consultation, contact Kaijo via email at info@kaijo-shibuya.com or call 408-675-5575.

Ultrasonics Clean Semiconductor Components for Heart Pacemakers

Implants used in medical procedures are subject to extremely high standards of cleanliness and sterilization.

Traditional cleaning methods including manual cleaning, using parts washers and steam sterilization are often not effective for implants using new technology. Semiconductors are fragile and sensitive to heat; thus, they could be damaged from the traditional cleaning methods or excess heat.

Ultrasonics provide an attractive alternative to the traditional cleaning methods.  Medical ultrasonic cleaners can clean implants with complex shapes and crevices, heat-sensitive semiconductor parts and other medical devices to achieve cleanliness and sterilization standards without damaging fragile components.

Ultrasonic cleaners use the scrubbing action of microscopic cavitation bubbles in the cleaning solution to clean parts quickly and effectively. An ultrasonic generator produces a high-frequency electric signal, and an ultrasonic transducer converts the signal to sound waves in the cleaning solution. As the sound waves travel past the parts to be cleaned, they generate the tiny bubbles. The bubbles form and collapse in tune with the ultrasonic frequency, delivering a powerful scrubbing action against the surfaces of the parts to be cleaned.

While ultrasonic cleaning technology itself removes all traces of contaminants from the parts surfaces, it does not sterilize them. Therefore, a mild disinfectant or solvent can be added to the cleaning solution so that the parts can be cleaned and sterilized in the ultrasonic bath.

Some medical parts are robust with hard surfaces while others may be mechanically fragile or have delicate surfaces. Low frequencies (around 26 kHz) produce comparatively large bubbles with intense cleaning. Higher frequencies, on the other hand, deliver gentler cleaning with smaller bubbles. The frequency used with an medical ultrasonic cleaner needs to be chosen appropriately for the application to produce the right cleaning intensity.  Kaijo works with medical equipment manufacturers to provide expert guidance on using the right frequency and system for the specific application.

Read our newest article, Ultrasonic Clean Semiconductor Components for Heart Pacemakers, to learn more. If you would like to set up a free consultation to discuss your needs, or have questions, contact Kaijo Shibuya at 408-675-5575 or email info@kaijo-shibuya.com.