Low temperature disinfectant/sterilant for medical devices and topical applications

The powdered composition which reacts in water to form one or more peroxycarboxylic acids in an anti-microbial effective concentration providing surface disinfection/sterilization of human and animal skin, tissue and body cavities;

• and medical devices/instruments, comprising:
• from about 20% by weight to about 50% by weight of one or more perborates;
• from about 1% by weight to 50% by weight of one or more acyl donors of the formula:
• wherein R is C2-C4 alkyl, straight chained, branched, or cyclic, and from about 1% to 30% by weight of a buffering system which consists of a combination of monobasic, dibasic and/or tribasic sodium phosphate, either as hydrates and/or anhydrous salts;
• and
• from about 0.005% to 1.0% by weight of an alkylaryl sulfonate surfactant.