Microbial decontamination of barn surfaces using engineered water nanostructures (EWNS)

Engineered water nanostructures (EWNS) technology produces highly charged nanoscale water droplets with encapsulated reactive oxygen species (ROS) emerges as green microbial decontamination method. In this work, an electro-nanospray system was developed for the decontamination of common surfaces found in pig barns. Microbial inactivation of the device was tested at different conditions in a laboratory-scale on the inactivation of Escherichia coli (E. coli) at a bacterial concentration similar to pig barn surfaces levels. Pig barn surfaces were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and contact angle to understand the behaviors between the samples. Exposure time was the most influential operating parameter resulting in an E. coli log reduction of 2.66 after 40 min of exposure. On the other hand, decontamination efficiency was higher for wood, followed by concrete, metal and plastic with log reductions up to 2.96. EWNS technology was demonstrated as an efficient microbial decontamination method for animal confinement facilities surfaces treatment.