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Advanced Sterilization Capability with Low Environmental footprint for Patient Infection Optimized Safety

Project description

Advanced cold plasma sterilisation process for complex medical devices

New complex medical devices (MDs) require optimal sterilisation conditions, presenting challenges for both hospitals and MD manufacturers. AURORA’s in situ Cold Plasma Sterilisation technology for MDs eliminates biothreats without the need for chemicals or radiation, ensuring compliance with safety standards and environmental protection. In this context, the EIC-funded ASCLEPIOS project seeks to validate the feasibility of this cold plasma sterilisation process. The project has devised an effective method for sterilising all biothreats that is also compatible with delicate MDs. Having progressed to the technology readiness level (TRL) 6 stage, the technology aims to advance to TRL 9 for widespread deployment across Europe and the United States. These results will establish European leadership in this field, supplanting current solutions and addressing social, health and environmental challenges.

Objective

MedTech industry is facing the emergence of innovative single-use and reusable medical devices [MD] with ever more complex forms and sensitive components in needs of optimal safety conditions of sterilization. However, hospitals face problems with chemicals, radiation, and limited sterilization options, leading to compromises in patient safety and potential device contamination [over 20% of endoscopes are tainted]. Similarly, MD manufacturers encounter technological, environmental and health obstacles, which can limit production capacity and endanger patients' lives. Regulatory and political pressures are growing to eliminate the use of ethylene oxide (EtO), and current technologies face challenges in capacity and compatibility with MD materials, reducing the resilience of production of MDs.
In this context, AURORA has developed the first In Situ Cold [non-Thermal] Plasma Sterilization technology for MD that turns air gases into a plasma and doesnt use any chemicals, radiations, nor leave any potentially harmful residue. This breakthrough process, able to destroy all biothreats, is designed to answer the needs of both hospitals and MD manufacturers in better safety standard for patient and staff, and environmental protection.
ASCLEPIOS will materialize 12 years of R&D programs which aimed at validating the feasibility of its cold-plasma sterilization process and developing its efficacy on the full range of biothreats [spore, viruses, bacteria, biofilms] and while remaining compatible with fragile MDs, representing key assets towards unlocking early technical and economic barriers to commercial exploitation. While TRL6 has been successfully passed, the herein ASCLEPIOS proposal will allow reaching TRL9. This last step allows the technology to be deployed Europe- and US-wide, creating a strong economic activity, replacing current solutions and thus meeting social, health and environmental challenges and establishing a strong European leadership in this new field.

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Keywords

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Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

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Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

HORIZON-EIC-ACC-BF - HORIZON EIC Accelerator Blended Finance

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Call for proposal

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(opens in new window) HORIZON-EIC-2023-ACCELERATOR-01

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Coordinator

AURORA
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 2 499 139,13
Address
177 BOULEVARD DE L'YSER
76000 Rouen
France

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SME

The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.

Yes
Region
Normandie Haute-Normandie Seine-Maritime
Activity type
Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 3 570 198,75
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