Sterilizing injection pen cartridges

[scarywood75]

in interested if this is still going on, thx

No longer going on, but test results will be published at due time

 

[Morbius]

Old thread but...

Proper autoclaves run at 15 PSI but it is possible to sterilize at lower pressure and temperature if you do it longer.

This paper tested the Instant Pot and found that it was able to sterilize 1L of liquid media effectively when run for 150 minutes. Scroll down to "Instant Pot pressure cooker passes the spore sterilization test."

Assessment and verification of commercially available pressure cookers for laboratory sterilization

Laboratory science requires careful maintenance of sterile reagents and tools as well as the sterilization of waste prior to disposal. However, steam autoclaves typically used for this purpose may not be readily accessible to everyone in the scientific community, such as K-12 teachers...

journals.plos.org

These data indicated that the Instant Pot pressure cooker could sterilize spores to the level of an autoclave, and we infer that it would be capable of inactivating all other less heat resistant organisms to properly sterilize laboratory items for research.... All four pressure cookers tested were able to inactivate the microbes present in all of the trials except for the inactivation of G. stearothermophilus spores, in which only the Instant Pot was able to produce steam, pressure, and heat to the level necessary to achieve sterilizing conditions.

Now actually properly treating any particular kind of vial is a different question. (If it is sealed, steam doesn't get inside. If it isn't sealed, how do you assemble it in a sterile manner?) But in general it should be possible to sterilize gear and media in a 12 PSI Instant Pot.

Would I rather have 15 PSI, yes. In fact I bought a 15 PSI Presto pressure canner for my mushroom cultures.

 

[FlowerFairy]

The instapots only get up to 12psi. They are used but you need to increase the run time. I would go 2 hours minimum. The newer instapot max that does 15psi should be ok but I never researched how well they maintain pressure / temperature.
However I would sooner use one of the cheap 6 quart pressure cookers with no gauge but does have a traditional rocker weight that I can manipulate.

Someone on STG has been using an instapot - she said there is one model that gets high enough. They have a pinned post about it somewhere

 

[Arnie]

No longer going on, but test results will be published at due time

If you could please post the link to the result thread here once you have it, that would be awesome. Thanks.

 

[Lavender-rose]

LOL, I made the testing group. I've got the link. I was asking about sharing it with PickleRN. 🙂

Can you share the link, I’m highly interested. Pls and thank you

 

[scarywood75]

Can you share the link, I’m highly interested. Pls and thank you

Test group is closed already, test results will be provided once we have them

 

[Jailbreak7]

I ran my own test... these are as-is, or as I say, "as-manufactured." There's no color change on them nor does it appear that it's necessary..

 

[Arnie]

I ran my own test... these are as-is, or as I say, "as-manufactured." There's no color change on them nor does it appear that it's necessary..


View attachment 6737

Awesome. Thanks a lot for posting this, gives me some peace of mind. I still steam them though just to be safe. Would you mind sharing from where you purchased these from?

 

[ceebeebee]

This thread was very useful. My labels were blue initially. I had a prestige pressure cooker with weight and steamed these for half an hour and the labels turned black. A tiny drop of water was inside the pouch after this, but thats ok as the stopper did not pop out. As far as the stopper being stuck is concerned, I guess its some kind of glue or seal and is intended to be there. I tested one of them before steaming and it was still stuck. I think it surves 2 purposes. To prevent the stopper from popping when steamed. To accidently prevent the Stopper popping out when filling medication without using a second needle to let the air out, and its definitely not steam doing it.

Also I dont know what temperature the pressure cooker went as the bosch infrared thermomenter could not read the temp due to reflective surface of stainless steel. Hope this helps.

If a stopper is stuck, it is not because of glue or any sealant. Instead, this happens due to the expansion of the rubber during the heating process. Both the glass and rubber expand during heat sterilization, but as they cool, the glass contracts before the rubber does. This difference in contraction can cause the stoppers to stick. Additionally, these cartridges may have been stored for a long time before being sold or used, which can also contribute to the sticking of stoppers.
Note: Heat alone is not sufficient to sterilize these vials for our intended purposes.

When using a pressure cooker or Instant Pot for sterilization, the stoppers should pop out if the correct conditions are met—specifically, a temperature of 121°C (250°F) and a pressure of at least 15 psi. If the stoppers do not pop out, the cartridges have not reached the proper pressure for effective sterilization. If a stopper does pop out, you can easily replace it while the cartridge is still inside the sterilization bag.

After sterilization, there should be no steam or water droplets inside the bags or vials. If moisture is present, it typically indicates that the vials were not allowed to cool properly. Some people recommend using an air fryer or oven to dry (150C/300F) the vials thoroughly if any water remains inside.

 

[ceebeebee]

I ran my own test... these are as-is, or as I say, "as-manufactured." There's no color change on them nor does it appear that it's necessary..


View attachment 6737

Which brand/supplier were these from?

 

[Arnie]

If a stopper is stuck, it is not because of glue or any sealant. Instead, this happens due to the expansion of the rubber during the heating process. Both the glass and rubber expand during heat sterilization, but as they cool, the glass contracts before the rubber does. This difference in contraction can cause the stoppers to stick. Additionally, these cartridges may have been stored for a long time before being sold or used, which can also contribute to the sticking of stoppers.
Note: Heat alone is not sufficient to sterilize these vials for our intended purposes.

I have opened 6 vials till date and i see that for all vials, only the bottom part of the vial is stuck. When I carefully press the plunger with my fingers, i can see the rubber stretching at the bottom - like there was some synthetic glue used. I am assuming this is purposefully glued for the reason i mentioned above because in my case it came un treated (unless the factory heat treated this first before putting them into the pouch). But cant be sure.

Other than steaming, I usually flush my vials with 0.3 mils of back water and then transfer peptides into it. A lot of my friends usually use this without any steaming or cleaning and they say they have no issues. I have OCD and i do my steaming and flushing to be on the safer side.

 

[Lifeworthliving]

Question for those on this thread who are using a pressure cooker or Instant Pot. Are you just sterilizing your 3 mL cartridge, or are you sterilizing everything (in the packaging, of course)? Needles, syringes, vials, etc?

 

[Lifeworthliving]

This thread was very useful. My labels were blue initially. I had a prestige pressure cooker with weight and steamed these for half an hour and the labels turned black. A tiny drop of water was inside the pouch after this, but thats ok as the stopper did not pop out. As far as the stopper being stuck is concerned, I guess its some kind of glue or seal and is intended to be there. I tested one of them before steaming and it was still stuck. I think it surves 2 purposes. To prevent the stopper from popping when steamed. To accidently prevent the Stopper popping out when filling medication without using a second needle to let the air out, and its definitely not steam doing it.

Also I dont know what temperature the pressure cooker went as the bosch infrared thermomenter could not read the temp due to reflective surface of stainless steel. Hope this helps.

I tried this last night with my pressure cooker, rocker set to 15 PSI. I had a dish set above the water, but too much water collected next to the paper (going to try again with a metal rack). I believe this caused a failure in the packaging, allowing water to be sucked up into the packaging and the vial.

I did get the indicator testing section on the packaging ot fully activate.