Degradation Behaviors of Polymers due to Exposure of Active Oxygen Species Generated via Ultraviolet Lamps

Abstract

Active oxygen species (AOS) generated via ultraviolet lamps can be applied for various industrial processes owing to extremely strong oxidative abilities. It is well known that excited singlet oxygen atom [O(1D)], excited oxygen molecule (O2), ozone (O3) and hydroxyl radicals (OH), are of interest and value in surface modiˆcation, cleaning and oxidation processes. We have been investigated a new sterilization method using the AOS, and it is important to evaluate damages of polymer devices due to the exposure of the AOS for using as a sterilization apparatus. In this paper, we evaluated degradation behaviors of polymers used for medical devices due to the exposure of the AOS by using a colorimeter, spectrometer and pull test apparatus. We found that these polymer characteristics as bulk materials were maintained, although those of the surfaces were deteriorated by the AOS exposure.