MEDICAL DEVICE CLEANING

Many medical devices contain high-aspect-ratio tubes. The cleaning of these devices requires gravity liquid fill-and-drain equipment, some form of liquid injection, or manual scrubbing to ensure cleaning. The problem is that tortuous paths, dead-end paths, or annular changes in diameter or seals can hinder these efforts to the point where contaminants can “hide” from the cleaning fluid. In addition, tight areas hinder the flow of fluid, either preventing fluid from reaching the contaminant or restricting the flow to such a low rate that liquid cleaning is ineffective.

VCN condenses vapor in these areas and forces fluid out of the device. In simple terms, it is better to push the fluid out of the part rather than blow it out with external means. Pushing the fluid through the least-resistant path leaves contaminants behind in small or dead-end areas. Dunking systems do not produce the internal agitation required to produce clean devices. Manual scrubbing can miss areas due to the part’s complexity or human error.

The VCN process has none of these restrictions. Since vapor tends to form in tight nucleation areas, vapor evacuates these areas of spent fluid, and during a vacuum pause, fluid is allowed to refill them. Cycling the process exposes the contaminated area to volumes of fresh cleaner over a short period to ensure complete cleaning.

This video above shows how VCN nucleates vapor bubbles at tight areas to assure complete cleaning.