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Hygiene RSS FeedsThe Flowers That Bloom In The Spring - Tra-la! At last the crocuses have bloomed.There is something about the first flower of spring that changes everything. It signals, to me at least, the beginning of the gardening season.I've been pulling up weeds from the rose beds for a few weeks now. For the most part, the roses themselves seem to have handled the winter well. Rosa multiflora already has leaves. Rosa akransana and Rosa woodsii ultramontana are budding out; the latter of which (which normally do <br /><a href="http://www.wunderground.com/blog/fa/comment.html?entrynum=4">Read More</a>...Feed Source: www.wunderground.com Characterization and Kinetics Study of Off-Gas Emissions from Stored Wood Pellets -
The full potential health impact from the emissions of biomass fuels, including wood pellets, during storage and transportation has not been documented in the open literature. The purpose of this study is to provide data on the concentration of CO2, CO and CH4 from wood pellets stored in sealed vessels and to develop a kinetic model for predicting the transient emission rate factors at different storage temperatures. Five 45-l metal containers (305 mm diameter by 610 mm long) equipped with heating and temperature control devices were used to study the temperature effect on the off-gas emissions from wood pellets. Concurrently, ten 2-l aluminum canisters (100 mm diameter by 250 mm long) were used to study the off-gas emissions from different types of biomass materials. Concentrations of CO2, CO and CH4 were measured by a gas chromatograph as a function of storage time and storage temperature. The results showed that the concentrations of C... Variability and Determinants of Wood Dust and Resin Acid Exposure during Wood Pellet Production: Measurement Strategies and Bias in Assessing Exposure-Response Relationships -
Production of wood pellets is a relatively new and expanding industry in which the exposure profiles differ from those in other wood-processing industries like carpentries and sawmills where there are lower levels of wood dust. Sixty-eight personal exposure measurements of wood dust (inhalable and total dust) and resin acids were collected for 44 participants at four production plants located in Sweden. Results were used to estimate within- and between-worker variability and to identify uniformly exposed groups and determinants of exposure. In addition, overexposure, whether the risk of the long-term mean exposure of a randomly selected worker exceeding the occupational exposure limit is acceptably low, was calculated as well as the underestimation of the exposure–response relationship (attenuation). Greater variability in exposure between work shifts than between workers was observed with the within-worker variation accounting for 57–99% of the total variance in the in... Exposure to Manufactured Nanostructured Particles in an Industrial Pilot Plant -
Objectives: Nanomaterial production and the number of people directly in contact with these materials are increasing. Yet, little is known on the association between exposure and corresponding risks, such as pulmonary inflammation and oxidative stress.
Methods: Condensation Particle Counters, a DustTrakTM and Scanning Mobility Particle SizerTM quantified real-time size, mass and number concentrations in a nanostructure particle pilot-scale production facility, using a high-temperature gas-phase process, over a 25-day period. Temporal and spatial analysis of particle concentrations and sizes was performed during production, maintenance and handling. Number-based particle retention of breathing mask filters used under real-time production and exposure conditions in the workplace was quantified.
Results: The results demonstrate elevated number concentrations during production, which can be ... Temporal Evolution of Nanoparticle Aerosols in Workplace Exposure -
The evolution in time of a nanoparticle (NP) aerosol released into a simulated workplace environment was investigated for different starting scenarios including (i) NP release into a particle-free atmosphere and (ii) release in presence of a pre-existing background aerosol. In each case, particle number distributions and total number concentrations in a 2 m3 aerosol chamber were monitored over several hours. On the time scale and under the conditions relevant for workplace exposure, collisions between NP within their own size class and, if present, with the background aerosol were identified as the most important mechanism driving the change in particle size and number concentration. A model has been formulated on the basis of well-known aerosol dynamic principles to predict the evolution of NP number concentration for a defined source and a defined environment (a given background aerosol concentration). A dimensionless number is introduced to scale the rate of NP concen... Determining the Dustiness of Powders--A Comparison of three Measuring Devices -
The dustiness of 12 test powders was determined using three different measuring methods. One of the methods, the continuous drop method, is a reference test method according to the EN 15051 ‘Workplace atmospheres—Measurement of the dustiness of bulk materials—Requirements and reference test methods’. A test of equivalence between the reference test method and the other two methods, the modified Heubach Dustmeter, a rotating drum method and the Palas Dustview, a single-drop method, has been carried out as provided in Annex D of the European standard. No equivalence was found between any of the test methods. An applied best-case scenario yielded a slightly better outcome, but the results lead to the conclusion that it is impossible to generate viable values using the test of equivalence provided in the standard. This outcome was expected and is due to the different handling procedures applied—which, however, relates to the reality of the variety of mater... Physical and Biochemical Properties of Airborne Flour Particles Involved in Occupational Asthma -
Aerosol particles which deeply penetrate the human airways and which trigger baker's asthma manifestations are known to represent only a part of flour and of airborne particles found in bakeries. They were a major focus of this study. To this end, aerosols were produced from different wheat and rye flours, using an automatic generator designed for bronchial challenge. Particles were characterized for their size distribution, their ability to be deposited in the airways, their protein content, their histological composition and their reactivity with immunoglobulin E (IgE) present in sera from asthmatic bakers. Like dust particles collected in the bakery, the aerosols produced showed increased protein content but decreased IgE reactive protein content when compared to the corresponding bulk flours. The sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis of these particles showed a predominance of endosperm gluten proteins. Under scanning electron microscopy, flour part... Exposure to Mutagenic Aldehydes and Particulate Matter During Panfrying of Beefsteak with Margarine, Rapeseed Oil, Olive Oil or Soybean Oil -
Objectives: The aim of the study was to see if a cook could be exposed to mutagenic aldehydes in fumes from frying of beefsteak using margarine, rapeseed oil, soybean oil or virgin olive oil as frying fat. In addition, levels of particle exposure were measured to make the results comparable to other studies. Methods: The levels of higher aldehydes and total particles were measured in the breathing zone of the cook during the panfrying of beefsteak with the four different frying fats. In addition, the number of particles in the size intervals 0.3–0.5, 0.5–0.7 and 0.7–1.0 µm in the kitchen was registered. Results: Measured levels of mutagenic aldehydes were between non-detectable and 25.33 µg m–3 air. The exposure level of total aerosol was between 1.0 and 11.6 mg m–3. Conclusions: Higher aldehydes were detected in all samples from this study, and mutagenic aldehydes were detected in most of the samples. Frying with marg... Comparison of Indices Proposed as Criteria for Assigning Skin Notation -
Objectives: Skin notations are used as a hazard identification tool to flag chemicals associated with a potential risk related to transdermal penetration. The transparency and rigorousness of the skin notation assignment process have recently been questioned. We compared different approaches proposed as criteria for these notations as a starting point for improving and systematizing current practice.
Methods: In this study, skin notations, dermal acute lethal dose 50 in mammals (LD50s) and two dermal risk indices derived from previously published work were compared using the lists of Swiss maximum allowable concentrations (MACs) and threshold limit values (TLVs) from the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH). The indices were both based on quantitative structure–activity relationship (QSAR) estimation of transdermal fluxes. One index compared the cumulative dose received through skin given specific exposure surface and duration to... Validation of Transferability of DBA Derivatization and LC-MS/MS Determination Method for Isocyanates via an Interlaboratory Comparison -
An adapted method for the quantitative determination of isocyanates in air was implemented and validated in-house. The method was based on air sampling using an impinger flask containing di-n-butylamine (DBA) in toluene and a glass fibre filter in series. The DBA derivatives were determined using liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry. Studied isocyanates were isophorone diisocyanate, isocyanic acid (ICA), methyl isocyanate, ethyl isocyanate, propyl isocyanate, hexamethylene diisocyanate (HDI), 2,6- and 2,4-toluene diisocyanate, 4,4'-methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI), phenyl isocyanate (PhI), MDI oligomers and different HDI adducts. Monitoring of selected reactions resulted in quantifications with correlation coefficients >0.995, within-batch relative standard deviation (RSD) of repeatability was <13% for all analytes. Between-batch RSD (reproducibility) was determined for all the compounds with the exception of the adducts and oligomers and was also &l... Cyclophosphamide Contamination Observed on the External Surfaces of Drug Vials and the Efficacy of Cleaning on Vial Contamination -
Objective: Evaluate contamination on the external surfaces of cyclophosphamide vials available on the Canadian market during storage in pharmacy departments and the efficacy of decontaminating the external surfaces of vials using various cleaning techniques.
Methods: The study consisted of three phases: the quantification of cyclophosphamide on the external surfaces of 10 vials of Procytox® and 10 vials of Cytoxan® available on the Canadian market with or without prewashing (Phases I and II) and the quantification of cyclophosphamide on the surfaces of 30 deliberately contaminated empty sterile vials cleaned using three different washing techniques (Phase III). The quantification of cyclophosphamide was conducted using ultra performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry.
Results: In Phase I, we observed that 9 of 10 vials of Procytox® and 4 of 10 vials of Cytoxan® had traces of cyclophosphamide. The average concentration of cyclophosp... Head-and-Face Anthropometric Survey of Chinese Workers -
Millions of workers in China rely on respirators and other personal protective equipment to reduce the risk of injury and occupational diseases. However, it has been >25 years since the first survey of facial dimensions for Chinese adults was published, and it has never been completely updated. Thus, an anthropometric survey of Chinese civilian workers was conducted in 2006. A total of 3000 subjects (2026 males and 974 females) between the ages of 18 and 66 years old was measured using traditional techniques. Nineteen facial dimensions, height, weight, neck circumference, waist circumference and hip circumference were measured. A stratified sampling plan of three age strata and two gender strata was implemented. Linear regression analysis was used to evaluate the possible effects of gender, age, occupation and body size on facial dimensions. The regression coefficients for gender indicated that for all anthropometric dimensions, males had significantly larger measurements than f... Copyright © 2008, Mulitple Sources of Income. All Rights Reserved. |