Final answer:
The chemical process that uses specific products to destroy harmful organisms on environmental surfaces is called disinfection. Disinfection aims to inactivate most microbes with chemicals or heat but doesn't necessarily lead to sterilization, which is the complete removal of all microorganisms. Sanitization is about reducing microbes to safe levels, and decontamination might include disinfection or sterilization.
Step-by-step explanation:
The name of the chemical process that uses specific products to destroy harmful organisms on environmental surfaces is disinfection. The process of disinfection inactivates most microbes on the surface of a fomite by using antimicrobial chemicals or heat but does not guarantee complete sterilization since some microbes, like endospores, may remain. While disinfectants are used on inanimate objects to reduce the number of harmful organisms, sterilization is the complete removal or killing of all vegetative cells, endospores, and viruses from an item or environment. Sanitization is a lower level of cleanliness than sterilization, aiming to reduce the number of microbes to safe levels, particularly in public health contexts. Decontamination is a broader term that may encompass cleaning, disinfection, and even sterilization to make an environment or object safe.
For deeper understanding, the difference between a disinfectant and an antiseptic is primarily where it is applied; disinfectants are meant for inanimate objects, whereas antiseptics are used on living tissues. When it comes to the removal of microbes, sterilization is most effective since it aims to destroy all forms of microbial life, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, and spores.
Using chemicals like chlorine bleach for disinfection has to be done with careful consideration of the concentration, to balance efficacy against microbes and safety for humans and the environment.