Electrolysed water (hypochlorous acid) generation and efficacy against food-borne pathogens

Abstract

The present study was conducted to investigate the efficacy of electrochemically generated hypochlorous acid (HOCl) against Salmonella enterica, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus under clean and soiled conditions. Electrolysed water was produced using a high purity sodium chloride salt solution (90% saturation) and 25–35 A of current supplied to the electrolytic cell and diluted to 165 mg L-1 (P165) and 200 mg L-1 (P200) HOCl. P165 was highly potent against Salmonella enterica and Staphylococcus aureus under clean conditions while P200 showed >99% anti-microbial activity when tested in the presence of 5% foetal bovine serum albumin for a contact time of 10 min. Assuming a fail-threshold of 3/60 as set by the USEPA, the results suggest that HOCl is a good alternative for hard surface disinfection.