In a method and an apparatus for recovering a sterilizing gas, in particular ethylene oxide, materials to be sterilized are sterilized with the sterilizing gas in a sterilizing chamber;
the sterilizing gas/air mixture withdrawn from the sterilizing chamber is predried in a precooler; the predried sterilizing gas/air mixture is freed from residual moisture in a drier, the sterilizing gas liquefied in a low-temperature condenser and stored in a storage container until reuse in the sterilizing chamber.
The sterilizing and the entire recovery of the sterilizing gas takes place at pressures beneath the atmospheric pressure surrounding the apparatus.
