Comparative study of an inhalable and a total dust sampler for personal sampling of dust and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the gas and particulate phase.

For many years the closed-face plastic cassette has been widely used for monitoring 'total' dust in working atmospheres. In the late 1980s a different personal sampler was developed at the Institute of Occupational Medicine in Edinburgh. This so-called IOM sampler was designed to meet the criteria for inhalable dust (EN 481). In this work, a comparison of the closed-face 25 mm Gelman total dust sampler and the IOM inhalable sampler was made for exposure measurements of dust and PAHs among workers in an electrode paste plant. The two samplers were modified in order to permit sampling of both particulate and gas-phase PAHs. Three groups with different tasks were examined. The particle size distribution was determined using personal inhalable dust spectrometers and the GRIMM particle counter. The results showed that higher concentrations of dust and particulate PAHs were measured with the IOM inhalable sampler than the Gelman total dust sampler and the difference between the samplers was significant. This is in agreement with previously reported studies. In some samples collected with the IOM sampler very large particles were observed. There was no significant difference between volatile PAHs measured with the two samplers. For semi-volatile PAHs a significant difference between the samplers was observed, which was ascribed to evaporation loss from the filters during storage.

[1]  P. Vinzents,et al.  A method for establishing tentative occupational exposure limits for inhalable dust. , 1995, The Annals of occupational hygiene.

[2]  J. H. Vincent,et al.  Progress towards implementation of new aerosol industrial hygiene standards, with special reference to the aluminium industry , 1995 .

[3]  P. Tsai,et al.  Impaction model for the aspiration efficiencies of aerosol samplers at large angles with respect to the wind , 1993 .

[4]  H. Kromhout,et al.  The relationship between polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in air and in urine of workers in a Söderberg potroom. , 1993, American Industrial Hygiene Association journal.

[5]  Y. Thomassen,et al.  Sampling and chemical characterization of aerosols in workplace air , 1993 .

[6]  J. Buchet,et al.  Evaluation of exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in a coke production and a graphite electrode manufacturing plant: assessment of urinary excretion of 1-hydroxypyrene as a biological indicator of exposure. , 1992, British journal of industrial medicine.

[7]  R. Anzion,et al.  Ambient and biological monitoring of cokeoven workers: determinants of the internal dose of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. , 1990, British journal of industrial medicine.

[8]  S C Soderholm,et al.  Aerosol sampling efficiency of 37 mm filter cassettes. , 1986, American Industrial Hygiene Association journal.

[9]  A. Bjørseth,et al.  Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the work atmosphere. I. Determination in an aluminum reduction plant. , 1978, Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health.

[10]  J. M. Christensen,et al.  Correlation of levels of volatile versus carcinogenic particulate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in air samples from smokehouses , 1991, International archives of occupational and environmental health.

[11]  James H. Vincent,et al.  Aerosol sampling : science and practice , 1989 .

[12]  J H Vincent,et al.  A personal inspirable aerosol spectrometer for applications in occupational hygiene research. , 1987, The Annals of occupational hygiene.

[13]  J H Vincent,et al.  A new personal sampler for airborne total dust in workplaces. , 1986, The Annals of occupational hygiene.

[14]  H C Brandt,et al.  SAMPLING AND ANALYSIS OF BITUMEN FUMES , 1985 .

[15]  K. Andersson,et al.  Sampling and analysis of particulate and gaseous polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from coal tar sources in the working environment , 1983 .

[16]  W. Cautreels,et al.  Experiments on the distribution of organic pollutants between airborne particulate matter and the corresponding gas phase , 1978 .