MultiMini disinfection process
The SonoSteam MultiMini equipment for disinfection and decontamination processes
The MultiMini equipment is one of our most used testing appliances. It is a small scale equipment suitable for testing any types of small material and food. Items can be cut into smaller sections to fit inside the chamber. Steam-ultrasound nozzles are placed on top and bottom of the treatment chamber. Four nozzles are adequate for this small scale. When the working parameters are identified, the disinfection or decontamination process is simply scaled and designed into a bigger custom-made unit.
MultiMini working parameters for effective disinfection and decontamination processes
Different food and contact surface materials can be processed on the MultiMini, simply by placing them on the associated conveyor belt and running them through the treatment chamber at different speeds. The system can easily be controlled by means of steam pressure, ventilation, treatment time and nozzle control. Physical measurements such as temperatures, intensity and steam consumption are automatically monitored during trials. If needed, an integrated cooling system can also be installed as part of the construction. The disinfection or decontamination processes are automatically controlled through PLC systems.
Cheap and effective process designs
SonoSteam disinfection and decontamination processes are effective and cheap
The MultiMini chamber is designed in a way that increases acoustic properties for the nozzles, which in turn optimizes the steam process for effective disinfection. The chamber area is isolated to avoid excessive heat formation and steam consumption. There are a total of 4 nozzles, where three are placed above the conveyor belt and one is placed below. Each nozzle uses only 6 grams of steam per second. Most types of food and non-food products are processed within just a second and this is often enough to reach high microbial reduction.
Disinfection and decontamination process in just a second achieves more than 7 logs microbial reduction
Materials such as stainless steel (abundant in food industries) have been tested with the MultiMini. The disinfection process reached more than 7 logs reduction in just one second. The thermal properties of stainless steel are different than e.g. aluminum or plastic, where full reductions (more than 7 logs) are reached in just a half a second. Treatment processes this fast are ideal for modern production lines where time is always a limiting factor.
From MultiMini to MultiMighty!
Small scale testing equipment is applied to determine process for full scale equipment
The MultiMini equipment has been used to test small homemade samples of mattresses. The cover used to prepare these small sample mattresses came from a full size hospital mattress, provided by a Danish hospital that were looking for an effective non-damaging heat treatment. Our homemade version was tested on the MultiMini and after identifying all parameters, the disinfection process was scaled to a full size Mattress Disinfection system, designed to treat 25 mattresses in only 1 hour. The mattress disinfection equipment is currently being used at the Danish hospital. Our plans are to built a second generation equipment that can include other types of contact materials that can be treated together with the mattresses. The possibilities for such disinfection processes are many and most of them are developed from small scale testing.
Disinfection process – Different food and contact materials tested on the MultiMini
- Stainless steel surfaces
- Food packaging
- Salmon filets
- Chicken carcass parts
- Berries and fruits
