Ensuring the effectiveness of preservatives is critical to maintaining product integrity, regulatory compliance, and cost-efficiency. Onnovo’s Efficacy Testing Services provide comprehensive microbial testing to help customers in paints & coatings, personal care, home care, construction materials, and industrial applications identify microbial threats and determine the ideal preservation strategy.
Disclaimer: While Onnovo possesses expertise in microbial efficacy testing, customers are responsible for conducting their own product tests and ensuring product performance under their specific conditions.
Understanding the Microbe of Concern
Microbial contamination can compromise product quality, shelf-life, and safety. Onnovo offers advanced microbial identification and efficacy testing to pinpoint bacteria, fungi, algae, and viruses that may impact formulations. By understanding the specific microbial threats, we help customers implement the RIGHT CHEMISTRY to protect their products while optimizing preservative dosage and cost.
Different industries face unique microbial challenges. Onnovo offers targeted efficacy tests to address contamination concerns across a variety of applications:
Bacteria Testing
Bacterial contamination can cause spoilage, malodor, viscosity shifts, and phase separation in formulations. Our bacterial efficacy tests include:
- Challenge Testing (Preservative Efficacy Test – PET): Simulating real-world contamination in cosmetics, personal care, and home care products to evaluate antimicrobial effectiveness.
- Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) Testing: Identifying the lowest concentration of a preservative that effectively inhibits bacterial growth.
- Colony Count & Identification: Detecting and quantifying bacteria in paints, coatings, construction materials, and industrial formulations.
- Biofilm Resistance Testing: Assessing preservative effectiveness in preventing bacterial biofilms in waterborne coatings, adhesives, and metalworking fluids.
Fungal (Mold & Yeast) Testing
Fungi, including mold and yeast, are common threats in personal care, coatings, and construction materials, leading to spoilage, discoloration, and degradation. Our fungal efficacy testing includes:
- Fungal Challenge Testing: Evaluating the resistance of a formulation to fungal contamination over time.
- Accelerated Aging Studies: Simulating long-term storage to predict fungal growth risks in paints, adhesives, and household cleaners.
- Fungal Identification & Strain Differentiation: Pinpointing fungal strains specific to wood preservatives, coatings, and building materials.
Algae Resistance Testing
Algae growth is a major concern in exterior coatings, wood protection, and construction materials. Onnovo’s algae efficacy testing includes:
- Algae Growth Inhibition Testing: Determining the effectiveness of algaecides in preventing algae proliferation on surfaces.
- Environmental Exposure Testing: Simulating outdoor conditions to evaluate the long-term resistance of architectural coatings and façade treatments to algae growth.
- Comparative Algaecide Performance Studies: Benchmarking different preservative systems to identify the most effective formulation.
Virus Testing
With increased demand for antimicrobial efficacy in home care, institutional cleaning, and personal hygiene products, Onnovo offers virus testing to validate disinfectant claims:
- Virucidal Efficacy Testing: Measuring the effectiveness of preservatives and disinfectants in inactivating viruses on surfaces.
- Contact Time Testing: Determining the required exposure time for effective virus neutralization in surface cleaners, hand sanitizers, and air purification systems.
Different industries require distinct approaches to microbial control. Onnovo provides application-specific efficacy testing to ensure preservatives meet the performance needs of each sector:
- Paints & Coatings: We conduct wet-state and dry-film preservation tests, including ASTM D2574 for in-can bacterial resistance and ASTM D3273 for fungal resistance in coatings.
- Personal Care & Home Care: Our Preservative Efficacy Tests (PET), following ISO 11930, evaluate antimicrobial effectiveness in cosmetics and household formulations.
- Construction Materials: We perform fungal and algae resistance testing, such as ASTM G21 for mold growth on polymeric materials and ASTM D5589 for coatings.
- Industrial Fluids: Using biofilm formation studies and bacterial resistance tests, we assess microbial stability in metalworking fluids and adhesives.
By leveraging industry-standard testing methodologies, we help customers select the most effective and cost-efficient microbial control strategies tailored to their products.
By leveraging our deep industry knowledge, we help customers identify the most effective and cost-efficient microbial control strategies.
Optimized Preservation Strategy – Cost & Efficacy Balance
Through our microbial testing services, Onnovo helps customers fine-tune preservative selection to:
- Minimize Preservative Dosage: Identifying the lowest effective concentration for cost efficiency.
- Maximize Microbial Control: Ensuring complete protection against bacteria, fungi, algae, and viruses.
- Improve Product Stability: Reducing microbial risks that lead to formulation failure, discoloration, odor, and phase separation.
- Meet Regulatory Requirements: Ensuring compliance with global preservative regulations (EU BPR, US EPA, China’s CSAR, etc.).
