I'll leave off buying the dishwasher just yet then.
New tap turns water into super-cleaning potion
Scientists in Southampton have been given a grant by the Royal Society to develop an ultrasonic tap head that makes water clean better. By introducing bubbles and ultrasound to the water, the new nozzle developed by Professor Tim Leighton and Dr Peter Birkin ramps up the ability of the water to shift dirt and cuts down on …
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Thursday 10th November 2011 20:35 GMT Dan Paul
Ultrasonic Cleaning - not for the average person (Pedantic Topic Alert)
If anyone has ever had any experience with commercial ultrasonic cleaners they would know that the sound is beamed in from the side or bottom of the tank and aimed at the parts that need to be cleaned. The cleaning fluid can be water, solvents etc. The sound waves cause cavitation when they reach the surface of the part that needs cleaning and the cavitation (tiny but very powerful implosions) scour the dirt away.
We have a local manufacturer of such machines in Jamestown, NY USA and they not only warn customers they could suffer skin damage if they put their hands in the solution, they go to great lengths to prevent it happening with electrically locked tank covers and interlocks with the control PLC to shut off the transducers if the tank cover is opened.
Apparently the cavitation will cause flesh to be macerated as the sound waves hit your bones.
This technology is nothing like ultrasound imaging which operates at different frequencies and low amplitudes.
Ultrasonic cleaning uses much higher amplitudes (greater power) in the kilowatt ranges that literally causes what looks like boiling in the cleaning solution, but peels paint and rust off metal parts. They dip a complete nasty, crusty engine block in and it comes out looking like it's brand new in a few minutes.
One reason why these could "sanitize" better is that anything organic in the cleaning solution will be reduced to almost nothing.
In other news, "Boffins" develop ceramic armor hand cream so you can use one of these new taps safely.
Just wait for the lawsuits when "Mom" decides to try to wash one of the children in the kitchen sink with the newfangled kitchen "tap". It certainly won't be suitable for handwashing (unless you enjoy your flesh macerated).
http://www.ctgclean.com/blackstone-ney-ultrasonics.php