Autoclaves and incinerators are both used extensively in the disposal of medical and hazardous waste. However, they both handle this task differently and both leave very different results in the end. The important question is which is the right solution for you. In this presentation, we hope to share the key differences with you. https://addfield.com/autoclave/

1. The truth behind
Autoclaves for
medical waste
incineration

2. In the destruction of medical waste, it is
widely understood that the safest way to
reliably and permanently destroy
hazardous pathogens and germs is with
heat. As manufacturers of the worlds most
trusted range of medical incinerators, we
are more than well aware of the risks and
benefits associated with handling medical
waste.
Which is the right solution
for you

3. In recent years a different approach to
waste destruction has become popular
and that is using an Autoclave. While not
without merit an Autoclave can be very
effective at treating a specific type of
medical waste. However, the important
question is what is the safest for the long
term.
Which is the right solution
for you

4. What is an Autoclave?
An Autoclave is a pressurised chamber
that is used to sterilise waste at
temperatures of approximately 129°C
(249ºF). Operating in a similar fashion to a
traditional pressure cooker. They are used
in many industries for a variety of uses not
just for the destruction of waste.

5. It has been in use for more than 100
years with the first recorded Autoclave,
being produced in 1884 which in itself
was an adaption of a Steam Digester
which had been in use since 1679.
What is an Autoclave?

6. Autoclaves are available in
compact solutions that can
be easily installed in most
environments which have
made them very popular in
Microbiology, Tattooing,
Body Piercing, Veterinary
Medicine, and Dentistry.

7. They are beneficial for the
sterilisation of many materials
as they operate on a non-
destructive path which
leaves many items able to be
recycled and reused.

8. Due to the more compact
nature of an autoclave when
they are used for larger scale
medical waste destruction,
this needs to be alongside a
biological shredder which
cuts waste into smaller pieces
to be able to be processed.

9. What is safer Autoclave
or Incineration
Operational safety

10. When used correctly an Autoclave and an
Addfield incinerator are both equally safe to use.
The Autoclave benefits from operating similarly to
a home cooker once the contents are loaded in
a switched on.
Addfield incinerators are fitted with advanced
safety features and designed to reduce ambient
heat generated making them more comfortable
to operate.
What is safer Autoclave or
Incineration

11. The weak point of the Autoclave operation
appears when you consider that you will also be
required to use an industrial waste shredder to
initially reduce the composition of waste to be
sterilised, adding the dangers of physical injury
from using a shredder alongside the pathological,
particulate risks associated with shredding
infectious tissue.
Incinerators do not require waste to be interfered
with before loading which makes them a safer
solution for maintaining complete biosecurity in
operation.
What is safer Autoclave or
Incineration

12. Mixed medical waste can take many
forms, where an Autoclave may be the
ideal solution for sterilising medical tools
and syringes when it comes to larger
pathological waste it can struggle with
the size.
Destruction of Medical Waste

13. As it operates in the same principles of an
advanced pressure cooker and waste needs
to be reduced into smaller chunks for heating
to prevent only the outside areas being
sterilised.
Destruction of Medical Waste
This is not ideal when dealing with a
large biological matter such as body
parts or organs.

14. Viral infections can contaminate every cell in the
infected matter when heated in an Autoclave the
material is sterilised externally however depending
upon the density and temperature and time of the
autoclave process the toxins and bacteria may simply
be restricted rather than destroyed.

15. Medical Autoclaves typically process waste at 134ºC
for three minutes or 121ºC for 15 minutes. This has
been proven to be ineffective at completely
destroying, Creutzfeld-Jakob disease more commonly
known as CJD or can become active once more
after being autoclaved within only 6 days.
The sterilisation process uses ‘damp heat’ to treat the
waste it is not recommended for some materials such
as plastics and papers.

16. In comparison an Addfield incinerator will initially heat
waste to a minimum of 850ºc in the primary chamber
where it will combust and reduce in size. Following the
primary chamber, the gasses travel into a secondary
chamber where the gasses will be heated to a higher
temperature of approximately 1100°c for a minimum
of 2 seconds. At this temperature, any prions, toxins,
odours and bacteria will be completely neutralised.

17. An autoclave only heats the
materials that are placed inside
it. It does not reduce the overall
volume or mass of the waste. This
will still leave you with the
problem of having to dispose of
the waste in a landfill or other
means of removal
Disposal of remnants
of Medical Waste

18. This is not ideal if the waste has
not been completely sterilised of
toxins such as CJD, which will
simply hibernate in the ground
before becoming a potential
environmental hazard in years to
come.

19. An incinerator operates along the principals
of destroying through burning which
alongside safely neutralizing any hazards
reduces the waste to dispose of by up to 97%.
This is a much more manageable amount of
waste which can easily be disposed of and in
most instances can be sent to landfill without
requiring additional permits.
INCINERATION

20. * 100 Kg of waste that has been Autoclaved
will still leave you with approximately 100Kg of
solid waste to dispose of.
* 100Kg of waste that has been incinerated
will leave you with approximately 3Kg of ash
to dispose of.
INCINERATION

21. As important today, as it will be in the future,
is the environmental impact of operating an
Autoclave versus an incinerator.
ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY

22. An Autoclave is powered purely by
electricity which is often presented as a
positive feature. Unfortunately, the level of
electricity required to operate a
sterilisation process is quite considerable.
ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY

23. Being an electrically powered device
also reduces the potential longevity of
the Autoclave which relies more heavily
on specialist parts to run and can
become obsolete.
ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY

24. In the UK and most of the EU, an
Autoclave is only permitted to
treat specific types of medical
waste. As many developing
countries are following guidelines
and recommendations for the
environment initially established by
the EU it is very possible that in the
near future the usage of
Autoclaves for select waste will be
strictly regulated.

25. Incinerators unfairly receive
negative press due to the
perceived negative effects of
burning waste. Addfield
incinerators are built alongside the
most innovative approaches to
incineration.

26. Incorporating thickened steel
alongside an advanced multi-layered
refractory which have both been
designed to reduce the operating
costs by over 40%. A common concern
of incineration is the creation of smoke
and odours this is prevented through
the secondary chamber which heats
the gasses to more than 1100ºC and
only releases clean gasses back into
the environment.

27. Built robustly and designed to last for many years of
hard usage it is not uncommon to achieve more
than 20 years of usage from an Addfield incinerator,
greatly reducing the impact of manufacturing when
compared to using electronic devices.
Incinerators are already heavily
regulated along waste types and
emissions, having very strict
environmental guidelines to operate
along making them the ideal choice
for long term operation.

28. If you have a small Veterinary practice or Laboratory
then an autoclave is probably the right solution for
you.
However, if you require consistent destruction and
removal of hazardous medical and pathological
waste for many years to come, the sensible option
for you and the next generation would be to select a
high quality environmentally optimised Medical
Incinerator such as those manufactured by Addfield.
Is an Autoclave the
ideal solution for you?

29. Contact us
for more
information
C a l l + 4 4 ( 0 ) 1 5 4 3 5 7 1 2 8 0
s a l e s @ a d d f i e l d . c o m
w w w . a d d f i e l d . c o m
To learn more about the Addfield range of medical incinerators Click Here
Learn more about our highly popular MP200 Click Here