5. Conclusion

The cleaning of medical fabrics and mechanical parts, whether implantable or not, consists in removing all dirt and contamination (cutting and sizing oils, solid particles, dust, etc.) from their surface. The aim of this step is to render the surface physically clean, to enable subsequent operations in the production process to run smoothly, and to guarantee the quality and reliability of the finished product.

Taking these considerations into account, the special properties of supercritical fluids make cleaning with CO ₂ SC a relevant alternative technique for removing lubricants (cutting and sizing oils) and particles compared with conventional cleaning methods in leach or with conventional solvents (modified alcohol, hydrocarbon). In fact, CO ₂ SC technology enables a wide...