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Disinfectant#9:Peraceticacid:Weakacid,StrongDisinfectant? Peraceticacid(PAA)wasfirstregisteredasadisinfectantin1985bytheEPA.PAAisproducedby combiningaceticacid(vinegar)andhydrogenperoxide.Theresultisaperoxideversionofaceticacid (vinegar)thathasaverydistinctiveandapungentvinegarysmell.Itisaweakacidcomparedtoacetic acidbutcanbehighlycorrosiveifnotusedattheappropriatedilutions.Peraceticacidisaversatile chemicalthatcanbeusedinavarietyofapplicationswithitsmainuseasadisinfectantproductinfood andbeverageprocessing/producingplantsduetothefactthatitleavesnoharmfulresiduesand decomposesintoharmlessbyproducts. ThisishowwewouldratePeraceticaciddisinfectantsbasedonthekeydecisionmakingcriteria:(see below) PeraceticAcidDisinfectantReportCard Subject Grade Speedof Disinfection B to C Spectrumof Kill A to C Cleaning Effectiveness SafetyProfile C to D B to C Environmental Profile A to B Cost Effectiveness B Comments Ata5minutecontacttimeforkillingbacteriaandviruses,peracetic acidisfairlyrapidinkilling.Howeveritcarriesa30minutesporicidal contacttime,whichisunrealisticunlessusedforsoakingapplications. Certaintemperatures,pH,andconcentrationsaffecttheefficacyof peraceticacid. At3000ppm,peraceticacidcankillallmicrobiallifewhereasat10 ppm,itonlykillsbacteria. Peraceticacidhaspoorcleaningcapabilities Peraceticacidhasasafeoraltoxicity,however,itissensitizingtothe respiratorytractandirritatingtoskinandtheeyes Peraceticacidreadilydecomposesanditsprimaryandsecondary productsarealldeemednon-harmfultotheenvironment. Peraceticacidisreadilyavailablefromvariousmanufacturersandcan befoundinbothconcentratedandready-to-useformats. Asacleaner,peraceticperformspoorlyasitlacksdetergencyproperties.Asalludedtoin previousblogs,youmaywonderwhetherincreasingtheconcentrationofthisacidwouldbenefitits cleaning.Theanswerinshortis:No.Ahigherconcentrationwouldnotincreaseitscleaningabilitiesand infactwouldleadtoanincreaseincorrosiveness. Asagermicide,peraceticacidshowsfairlystrongefficacyagainstabroadspectrumof pathogens.Likemanydisinfectants,thetemperature,pHandconcentrationallplayasignificantrolein determiningtheantimicrobialproperties.Itisbactericidalat10ppm,fungicidalat30ppmandvirucidal at400ppmina5minutecontacttime.Furthermore,itissporicidalatconcentrationsof3000ppm.Itis moreeffectiveatslightlyhighertemperaturesanditsgermicidalactivityincreasesathigherpHranges. CombinationsofPAAandhydrogenperoxidefurtherboosttheefficacyprofile,asthisblendcanprevent theformationofbiofilmsonhardsurfaces.ThemethodbywhichPAAattackspathogensisthroughthe reactionwiththecellularwalls.Thisleadstobreakdownofcellmembranesandcellulardeathdueto cellcontentleakage.AnissueregardingPAAusageisitsstability.Inthepresenceofwater,itbreaks downquickly.Thiswouldhaveadirectaffectontheviabilityoftheproductovertime. Peraceticacid’ssafetyprofilecanalsobecloselycorrelatedtoitsconcentration.Thehigherthe concentration,theworsethesafetyprofileis.Forexample,aninusesolutionofPAAof5%hasrelatively loworaltoxicityatthisdilution.However,respiratoryissues,includingoccupationalasthma developmentassociatedwithPAAhavebeenreported.Further,itcanstronglysensitizerespiratory organsandcausemucusmembraneinflammation.Furthermoreitisimportanttobewearyofskinand eyeexposureasitcancauseirritation.Overall,peraceticacidpropercareneedstobetakeninitsuse. Theenvironmentalprofileofperaceticacidonceagaindependsontheconcentrations encountered.Athighconcentrations,itcanbetoxic.However,inuseconcentrationsdonotposemajor threatstotheenvironment.Furthermore,PAAisareadilydecomposablesubstanceandbreaksdownto productsthatarenotconsideredharmfultotheenvironment.