Dry Heat Sterilization

Source: Kay Stewart, RVT, RLATG, CMAR; Valerie A. Schroeder, RVT, RLATG. University of Notre Dame, IN In 1959 The 3 R's were introduced by W.M.S. Russell and R.L. Burch in their book The Principles of Humane Experimental Technique. The 3 R's are replacement, reduction, and refinement of the use of animals in research. The use of cell lines and tissue cultures that originated from research animals is a replacement technique, as it allows for many experiments to be conducted in vitro. Harvesting...

Cleaning, disinfection, and sterilization are the methods that help to break the infection chain and prevent disease. Cleaning The cleaning process usually involves using water with detergents or enzymatic cleaner and removing foreign material from objects and surfaces, including organic material such as body fluids or inorganic material like soil. Cleaning is performed before high-level disinfection and sterilization because foreign materials on the cover of the devices interfere with process...

Thermal Energy Microscopically, thermal energy is the kinetic energy associated with the random motion of atoms and molecules. Temperature is a quantitative measure of “hot” or “cold”, which depends on the amount of thermal energy. When the atoms and molecules in an object are moving or vibrating quickly, they have a higher average kinetic energy (KE) (or higher thermal energy), and the object is perceived as “hot”, or it is described as being at a higher temperature. When the atoms and...

The specific heat capacity of a substance refers to the energy required to increase the temperature of one gram of that substance by one degree Celcius. Specific heat capacity is often represented in calories (cal), grams (g), and degrees Celsius (oC), but can also be expressed in joules (J), kilograms (kg), and Kelvin (K), among other units. For example, increasing the temperature of one gram of water by 1°C requires one calorie of heat energy and can be written as 1 cal/g-°C, or 4186 J/kg/K.

Heat is a type of energy transfer that is caused by a temperature difference, and it can change the temperature of an object. Since heat is a form of energy, its SI unit is the joule (J). Another common unit of energy often used for heat is the calorie (cal), which is defined as the energy needed to change the temperature of 1 g of water by 1 °C, specifically between 14.5 °C and 15.5 °C, since the energy needed shows a slight temperature dependence. Another commonly used unit is the kilocalorie...