Autoclave Autoclave An autoclave is a pressure chamber used to carry out industrial processes requiring elevated temperature and pressure different from ambient air pressure. Autoclaves are used in medical applications to perform sterilization and in the chemical industry to cure coatings and vulcanize rubber and for hydrothermal synthesis. They are also used in industrial applications, especially regarding composites, see autoclave (industrial). Many autoclaves are used to sterilize equipment and supplies by subjecting them to pressurized saturated steam at 121 °C (249 °F) for around 15–20 minutes depending on the size of the load and the contents. The autoclave was invented by
Sterilization law in the United States in the best interest of the incompetent. Arkansas Code section 20-49-101 to -207 provides the guidelines for sterilizing an incompetent patient. In 1991, the Arkansas Supreme Court held the part of the Arkansas sterilization statute that allowed sterilization of an incompetent through direct medical channels, rather than approval from a court, to be unconstitutional because it denied the patient procedural due process. In 2013, the 4th District Court of Appeal held that a developmentally disabled adult with "mild mental retardation" may be reproductively sterilized if the court determines there is clear and convincing evidence that the procedure is medically necessary