July 28th, 2011
Autoclaves are now an essential part of a medical laboratory specifically the microbiology laboratory. Doctors and scientists have long been using autoclaves to disinfect their instruments before using them again. Aside from these people, other professions are also using the autoclave like tattooists. Glass and stainless steel instruments can be sterilized using the autoclave to be able to use it again safely.
In the year 1679, Denis Papin contributed to what we have now as autoclaves. During that time, the British physicist who was originally French-born invented the steam digester. It is also known as a pressure cooker at present. His invention was primarily used for cooking. In 1820, M. Lemare improved the steam digester and contended that it can cook meat for 30 minutes. After a few years in 1879, the autoclave was invented by Charles Chamberland who made the steam digester as his basis. He was a microbiologist who worked with Louis Pasteur and who found the importance of sterilizing medical and laboratory instruments at a high temperature to ensure that bacteria and other microorganisms are killed.
From its humble beginnings, the invention of autoclave has contributed wide enough in the medical industry and its efficiency is still being used today.