Types of Contamination - Particulate, Thin Film, and Microbial
Contamination is addressed to change harmful chemicals substance into less harmful ones. This can be performed in the ground ( this is known as in situ remediation), or the contaminated soil or groundwater can be removed, cleaned, and put back into the ground.
Contamination poses a significant risk to the individual as well as technical processes of experiment or production as well. Unguarded proliferation of contamination can quickly lead to product recalls, product damage, yield reduction, and other outcomes highly detrimental to businesses. Several products over different industries are recalled due to ineffective contamination control systems.
By this evidence it could be draw an conclusion that many businesses are not adequately protecting themselves from the harmful effects of contamination, and many products over many industries are being recalled due to unsafe manufacturing processes.
A contamination is defined as any undesirable foreign matter that is present on a surface. Contaminations can be classified into three different categories: 1) Particulate, 2) Thin Film (Both Organic and Inorganic), and 3) Microbial or biological contamination.
Particulate contamination can be defined as any foreign matter present on the surface as a physical object. Some examples of particulate contaminants are dust, hair, micro-fragments and fibers.
Thin film contamination, also called Molecular contamination, is present on the surface in the form of a thin film covering the whole surface or some areas of the surface. This type of contamination can be organic or inorganic. Some examples of thin film contaminants are skin oil, grease, surfactant/chemical residues, oxides and other unwanted films.
Microbial contamination can be present on the surface in the form of particles or thin films or a combination of both and refers to generally unwanted living organisms present on the surface. Some examples of microbial contaminants are spore, bacilli and organic cultures. This type of contamination generally occurs from the environment or residues from processes.