Hydrogen Peroxide for Cleanroom Surface Sterilization
Hydrogen peroxide is an excellent sterilizing solution to include in your cleanroom’s standard operating procedures for cleaning. Sterile controlled environments must rigidly adhere to cleaning and disinfecting regimens, and most include hydrogen peroxide.
Hydrogen peroxide disinfection is effective against a wide variety of micro-organisms and is cost-effective. It is a safe alternative to other methods that can be dangerous to human health, such as ethylene oxide (EtO), formaldehyde, peracetic acid, chlorine dioxide, or ozone.
Particularly in pharmacy cleanrooms, hospital environments, and other biological and life sciences applications, contamination can be catastrophic—not just for the company’s reputation but, more importantly, for customers who ingest or are injected with the manufactured products.
Frequent wipedown and disinfection of all surfaces using the right cleanroom chemicals and procedures is paramount to maintaining an aseptic environment. Let’s consider hydrogen peroxide for sterilization of cleanroom surfaces.
What Is Hydrogen Peroxide?
Most people’s first aid kit at home includes hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) to prevent and treat infection in surface wounds.
H₂O₂ has a very simple chemical structure: two oxygen atoms bonded together and to hydrogen atoms. The only difference between water and hydrogen peroxide is this extra oxygen atom, which gives hydrogen peroxide its power to destroy bacteria, challenging bacterial spores, and other microorganisms.
History of Hydrogen Peroxide as a Sterilant
As often happens, processes created for military or aerospace needs are later adapted for industry.
In the summer of 1994, the Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo released sarin nerve gas in Matsumoto just outside Nagano. This event, occurring four years before the Winter Olympics in the region, poisoned 600 people, killed 7, and hospitalized 58. Sarin nerve gas is approximately 26 times more deadly than cyanide.
US government leaders and security specialists recognized the potential of bio-warfare after this event. Scientists at Sandia National Laboratories were tasked with devising systems capable of counteracting a broad spectrum of biological threats. These systems had to be low in toxicity and minimally corrosive.
By the late 1990s, Sandia Labs developed hydrogen peroxide disinfecting systems for practical, rapid, and safe bio-decontamination. The Decon7 foam was the key system developed. As the federal government required large quantities of the hydrogen peroxide foam, it was licensed to private industries, which quickly realized its value and marketed it for a wide variety of industrial and health-sector applications.
How Does Hydrogen Peroxide Disinfect?
Hydrogen peroxide’s oxygen atoms are highly reactive. They attract electrons from bacterial cell walls, causing cell death. This process is called oxidation.
Using Hydrogen Peroxide to Disinfect Cleanroom Surfaces
Hydrogen peroxide is most often used as a 3–6% solution diluted with sterile water. Sterile cleanroom wipers with low lint levels are used to apply and wipe away the solution.
Most customers prefer pre-wetted hydrogen peroxide wipes for convenience and consistency of solution strength and saturation.
Pre-saturated wipes reduce waste since hydrogen peroxide is unstable and breaks down over time into inert oxygen gas and water, reducing efficacy if left between cleanings. Pre-wetted wipes ensure the solution is always ready to use.
If you mix solutions in your cleanroom or purchase ready-to-use hydrogen peroxide solutions, they are packaged in opaque bottles to minimize light exposure and slow degradation. Keep strict protocols for replacing expired cleanroom supplies.
Another key principle is surface preparation: clean the surface with detergent to remove debris, lint, or soil before applying hydrogen peroxide. Any residue can consume the sterilant and reduce its effectiveness. Often, a rinse with deionized water follows detergent cleaning.
When applying any sterilant, use linear strokes from cleanest to dirtiest areas. This minimizes recontamination. Many cleanroom cleaning procedures recommend a second wipedown with hydrogen peroxide to remove any remaining endotoxins.
We Can Help
Talk with our cleanroom consultants about hydrogen peroxide sterilant solutions for your cleanroom. We help you find the best products for your protocols and staff. Ask for free samples of any of our cleanroom consumables.
Important note: ensure you follow your cleanroom’s procedures. This information is educational and can be used to discuss potential changes, but it should not replace any procedure officially adopted in your environment.
