The intensity of spore inactivation depends more on other factors than on the wettability of the bacterial spores. However, hydrophobic surfaces lead to faster inactivation effects and should thus be preferred for aseptic packaging technology.

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of surface hydrophobicity and roughness of carrier materials on the inactivation of bacterial spores with gaseous hydrogen peroxide whereas condensate formation is prevented. Spores of Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus atrophaeus were applied either as single spore culture or as a mixed spore population to simulate natural contamination with microorganisms of different characteristics. Inactivation with gaseous hydrogen peroxide was carried out at 5200 ppm hydrogen peroxide without condensate formation. The inactivation results of B. subtilis and B. atrophaeus spores on carrier materials with varying surface hydrophobicity differed significantly. However, inactivation of the mixed spore populations resulted in similar resistance compared to the single spore batches. The results of this study indicate that surface hydrophobicity most probably has an impact on the inactivation with gaseous hydrogen peroxide whereas surface roughness only plays a minor role.