The Antimicrobial effects of copper alloy surfaces on the bacterium, E. coli 0157:H7

摘要

The strain of bacterium, E. coli 0157:H7, has been associated with several large-scale food recalls by processors in the United States. After initial results indicated that E. coli 0157:H7 was found to be nonviable in a few hours when placed on copper surfaces, but survived for many days on stainless steel, a broader program was launched in which the antibacterial effect was evaluated on 25 copper alloys. The alloys selected included coppers, brasses, bronzes, copper-nickels and nickel silvers. Testing was conducted at two temperatures, 20 C, which is room temperature, and 4 C, which is refrigeration temperature. The results confirm that the antibacterial effect is present in all the tested copper alloys, and, as expected, this action was faster at the higher temperature. The bacteria were found to be nonviable on copper alloy surfaces in the range of one to six hours at 20 C. It took longer, with a minimum time of 3 hours, at 4 C. This antibacterial effect, as expected, increases with increasing copper content. The anti-microbial attributes of copper alloys should be useful beyond food processing applications. It is the intent to evaluate the effect on other pathogens such as Listeria, and Legionella, and molds associated with respiratory infections.