# Decontamination

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{{Short description|Process of removing or neutralising harmful substances}}
{{For-text|DECON|[Nuclear decommissioning](/source/Nuclear_decommissioning)}}
{{Wiktionary}}
'''Decontamination''' (sometimes abbreviated as '''decon''', '''dcon''', or '''decontam''') is the process of removing [contaminant](/source/contamination)s on an object or area, including chemicals, micro-organisms, and/or [radioactive substances](/source/radioactive_contamination). This may be achieved by [chemical reaction](/source/chemical_reaction), [disinfection](/source/disinfectant), and/or physical removal. It refers to specific action taken to reduce the hazard posed by such contaminants, as opposed to general [cleaning](/source/cleaning).

Decontamination is most commonly used in medical environments, including [dentistry](/source/dentistry), [surgery](/source/surgery), and [veterinary science](/source/veterinary_science), in the process of [food preparation](/source/food_preparation), in [environmental science](/source/environmental_science),<ref>{{cite web |title="Water Decontamination", in ''McGraw Hill Yearbook of Science and Technology 2004'', p 372 |url=http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/pdf2004/fpl_2004_rowell002.pdf |access-date=2013-08-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200109050430/https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/pdf2004/fpl_2004_rowell002.pdf |archive-date=2020-01-09}}</ref> and in [forensic science](/source/forensic_science).<ref>{{cite journal |title=Evaluation of a decontamination protocol for hair shafts before mtDNA sequencing |year=1998 |journal=Forensic Science International |volume=94 |issue=1–2 |pages=65–71 |last1=Jehaes |first1=Els |last2=Gilissen |first2=Anja |last3=Cassiman |first3=Jean-Jacques |last4=Decorte |first4=Ronny |pmid=9670485 |doi=10.1016/S0379-0738(98)00052-8}}</ref>

==Methods==
Methods of decontamination include:<ref>[http://www.hse.gov.uk/biosafety/blood-borne-viruses/methods-of-decontamination.htm Health & Safety Executive: Methods of decontamination] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322164346/https://www.hse.gov.uk/biosafety/blood-borne-viruses/methods-of-decontamination.htm |date=2023-03-22 }}. Accessed 16 August 2013</ref>
* [Antisepsis](/source/Antisepsis)
* [Disinfection](/source/Disinfection)
* Physical [cleaning](/source/cleaning)
* [Sterilization (microbiology)](/source/Sterilization_(microbiology))
* [Ultrasonic cleaning](/source/Ultrasonic_cleaning)
* [Water purification](/source/Water_purification)

A variety of decontaminations methods may be used, including physical processes such as [distillation](/source/distillation), and chemical [cleanser](/source/cleanser)s such as [alcohols](/source/alcohol_(chemistry)) and [detergent](/source/detergent)s.

==See also==
* [Decontamination foam](/source/Decontamination_foam)
* [Dry decontamination](/source/Dry_decontamination)
* [Environmental remediation](/source/Environmental_remediation)
* [Groundwater decontamination](/source/Groundwater_decontamination)
* [Human decontamination](/source/Human_decontamination)
* [Soil decontamination](/source/Soil_decontamination)

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Civil defence}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Hygiene

{{Tech-stub}}
{{Health-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Decontamination](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decontamination) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decontamination?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.