Cold plasma for the disinfection of industrial food-contact surfaces: An overview of current status and opportunities



Katsigiannis, Andreas S, Bayliss, Danny L and Walsh, James L ORCID: 0000-0002-6318-0892
(2022) Cold plasma for the disinfection of industrial food-contact surfaces: An overview of current status and opportunities. COMPREHENSIVE REVIEWS IN FOOD SCIENCE AND FOOD SAFETY, 21 (2). pp. 1086-1124.

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Abstract

Food safety is the primary goal for food and drink manufacturers. Cleaning and disinfection practices applied to the processing environment are vital to maintain this safety; yet, current approaches can incur costly downtime and the potential for microorganisms to grow and establish, if not effectively removed. For that reason, manufacturers are seeking nonthermal, online, and continuous disinfection processes to control the microbial levels within the processing environment. One such emerging technique, with great potential, is cold atmospheric pressure plasma (CAP). This review presents the latest advances and challenges associated with CAP-based technologies for the decontamination of surfaces and equipment found within the food-processing environment. It provides a detailed overview of the technology and a comprehensive analysis of the many CAP-based antimicrobial studies on food-contact surfaces and materials. As CAP is considered an emerging technique, many of the recent studies are still in the preliminary stages, with results obtained under widely different conditions. This lack of cohesive information and an inability to directly compare CAP systems has greatly impeded technological development. The review further explores the challenge of scaling CAP technology to meet industry needs, considering aspects such as regulatory constraints, environmental credentials, and cost of use. Finally, a discussion is presented on the future outlook for CAP technology in this area, identifying key challenges that must be addressed to promote industry uptake.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: cold atmospheric plasma, food industry, food processing equipment, food-contact surfaces, nonthermal decontamination
Divisions: Faculty of Science and Engineering > School of Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Computer Science
Depositing User: Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited: 14 Feb 2022 16:41
Last Modified: 18 Jan 2023 21:12
DOI: 10.1111/1541-4337.12885
Open Access URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/1541-4337.12885
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URI: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3148933