Sealed Containers at www.japanese-home-gardens.com

Seeds with high moisture content deteriorate more rapidly than those with low moisture, provided they will tolerate drying. Sealed containers are beneficial to maintain low moisture content. There is more rapid degeneration of seeds stored in sealed containers which are opened and sealed repeatedly than of seeds in sealed containers which are never opened from the time of storage to the time of testing. Under adverse temperature and humidity conditions, there may be a favorable effect of reduced oxygen supply.

It was once thought that dangerous radioactive wastes could be dumped in sealed containers in the ocean depths. If the containers were to corrode, the radioactive substances would be released into the water and gradually circulate around the globe, poisoning marine life.

In the canning process destructive microorganisms causing the spoilage of food are eliminated by sterilization at a temperature of 180° F. at the center of the can. (Olives are an exception in the matter of temperature.) At the same time these harmful microorganisms are prevented from re-entering by the use of hermetically sealed containers and by the addition of harmless antiseptics such as sugar, salt, or vinegar. Sugar, in particular, is an important element in the processing of fruit. Since the first tin containers were made by hand at the rate of not more than sixty a day, improvement of the methods of manufacturing and sealing the containers became important to the growth of the industry. The electroplating of steel plate with a thin coating of tin developed during World War II as a means of conserving tin. At present the inner surface of the can is lightly coated with enamel. A thin rubber film then seals the can under mechanical pressure.