autoclave

/ˌɔdəˈkleɪv/

/ˈɔtəʊkleɪv/

Other forms: autoclaves

An autoclave is a piece of medical equipment that's used to sterilize tools and instruments. After a dentist examines your teeth, she'll put her dental tools in an autoclave to clean them for the next patient.

An autoclave uses high pressure and extremely hot steam to sterilize instruments. It's a vital piece of equipment in a hospital or a lab, since autoclaves make it easy to ensure that medical tools are completely clean and sterile. In French, autoclave means "self-locking," from auto-, "self, and the Latin clavis, "key."

Definitions of autoclave

1. noun

   a device for heating substances above their boiling point; used to manufacture chemicals or to sterilize surgical instruments
   synonyms: steriliser, sterilizer

   types:

   digester

   autoclave consisting of a vessel in which plant or animal materials are digested

   pressure cooker

   autoclave for cooking at temperatures above the boiling point of water

   type of:

   vessel

   an object used as a container (especially for liquids)
2. verb

   subject to the action of an autoclave
   type of:

   sterilise, sterilize

   make free from bacteria