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Buitrago E, Novello AM, Fink A, Riediker M, Rothen-Rutishauser B, Meyer T. NanoSafe III: A User Friendly Safety Management System for Nanomaterials in Laboratories and Small Facilities. NANOMATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2021; 11:2768. [PMID: 34685208 PMCID: PMC8541324 DOI: 10.3390/nano11102768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2021] [Revised: 10/05/2021] [Accepted: 10/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Research in nanoscience continues to bring forward a steady stream of new nanomaterials and processes that are being developed and marketed. While scientific committees and expert groups deal with the harmonization of terminology and legal challenges, risk assessors in research labs continue to have to deal with the gap between regulations and rapidly developing information. The risk assessment of nanomaterial processes is currently slow and tedious because it is performed on a material-by-material basis. Safety data sheets are rarely available for (new) nanomaterials, and even when they are, they often lack nano-specific information. Exposure estimations or measurements are difficult to perform and require sophisticated and expensive equipment and personal expertise. The use of banding-based risk assessment tools for laboratory environments is an efficient way to evaluate the occupational risks associated with nanomaterials. Herein, we present an updated version of our risk assessment tool for working with nanomaterials based on a three-step control banding approach and the precautionary principle. The first step is to determine the hazard band of the nanomaterial. A decision tree allows the assignment of the material to one of three bands based on known or expected effects on human health. In the second step, the work exposure is evaluated and the processes are classified into three "nano" levels for each specific hazard band. The work exposure is estimated using a laboratory exposure model. The result of this calculation in combination with recommended occupational exposure limits (rOEL) for nanomaterials and an additional safety factor gives the final "nano" level. Finally, we update the technical, organizational, and personal protective measures to allow nanomaterial processes to be established in research environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elina Buitrago
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Occupational Health and Safety (OHS), Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; (E.B.); (A.M.N.)
| | - Anna Maria Novello
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Occupational Health and Safety (OHS), Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland; (E.B.); (A.M.N.)
| | - Alke Fink
- BioNanomaterials, Adolphe Merkle Institute, University of Fribourg, Ch. des Verdiers 4, CH-1700 Fribourg, Switzerland; (A.F.); (B.R.-R.)
| | - Michael Riediker
- SCOEH: Swiss Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, Binzhofstrasse 87, CH-8404 Winterthur, Switzerland;
| | - Barbara Rothen-Rutishauser
- BioNanomaterials, Adolphe Merkle Institute, University of Fribourg, Ch. des Verdiers 4, CH-1700 Fribourg, Switzerland; (A.F.); (B.R.-R.)
| | - Thierry Meyer
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Group of Chemical and Physical Safety (ISIC-GSCP), Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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Benka-Coker ML, Peel JL, Volckens J, Good N, Bilsback KR, L'Orange C, Quinn C, Young BN, Rajkumar S, Wilson A, Tryner J, Africano S, Osorto AB, Clark ML. Kitchen concentrations of fine particulate matter and particle number concentration in households using biomass cookstoves in rural Honduras. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2020; 258:113697. [PMID: 31875572 PMCID: PMC7068841 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113697] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2019] [Revised: 10/21/2019] [Accepted: 11/29/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Cooking and heating with solid fuels results in high levels of household air pollutants, including particulate matter (PM); however, limited data exist for size fractions smaller than PM2.5 (diameter less than 2.5 μm). We collected 24-h time-resolved measurements of PM2.5 (n = 27) and particle number concentrations (PNC, average diameter 10-700 nm) (n = 44; 24 with paired PM2.5 and PNC) in homes with wood-burning traditional and Justa (i.e., with an engineered combustion chamber and chimney) cookstoves in rural Honduras. The median 24-h PM2.5 concentration (n = 27) was 79 μg/m3 (interquartile range [IQR]: 44-174 μg/m3); traditional (n = 15): 130 μg/m3 (IQR: 48-250 μg/m3); Justa (n = 12): 66 μg/m3 (IQR: 44-97 μg/m3). The median 24-h PNC (n = 44) was 8.5 × 104 particles (pt)/cm3 (IQR: 3.8 × 104-1.8 × 105 pt/cm3); traditional (n = 27): 1.3 × 105 pt/cm3 (IQR: 3.3 × 104-2.0 × 105 pt/cm3); Justa (n = 17): 6.3 × 104 pt/cm3 (IQR: 4.0 × 104-1.2 × 105 pt/cm3). The 24-h average PM2.5 and particle number concentrations were correlated for the full sample of cookstoves (n = 24, Spearman ρ: 0.83); correlations between PM2.5 and PNC were higher in traditional stove kitchens (n = 12, ρ: 0.93) than in Justa stove kitchens (n = 12, ρ: 0.67). The 24-h average concentrations of PM2.5 and PNC were also correlated with the maximum average concentrations during shorter-term averaging windows of one-, five-, 15-, and 60-min, respectively (Spearman ρ: PM2.5 [0.65, 0.85, 0.82, 0.71], PNC [0.74, 0.86, 0.88, 0.86]). Given the moderate correlations observed between 24-h PM2.5 and PNC and between 24-h and the shorter-term averaging windows within size fractions, investigators may need to consider cost-effectiveness and information gained by measuring both size fractions for the study objective. Further evaluations of other stove and fuel combinations are needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan L Benka-Coker
- Department of Health Sciences, Gettysburg College, 300 North Washington Street, Campus Box 432, Gettysburg, PA, 17325, USA; Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Jennifer L Peel
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - John Volckens
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Nicholas Good
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Kelsey R Bilsback
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Christian L'Orange
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Casey Quinn
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Bonnie N Young
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Sarah Rajkumar
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Ander Wilson
- Department of Statistics, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Jessica Tryner
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Sebastian Africano
- Trees, Water & People, 633 Remington Street, Fort Collins, CO, 80524, USA
| | - Anibal B Osorto
- Asociación Hondureña para el Desarrollo, Tegucigalpa, Honduras
| | - Maggie L Clark
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA.
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Bau S, Rousset D, Payet R, Keller FX. Characterizing particle emissions from a direct energy deposition additive manufacturing process and associated occupational exposure to airborne particles. JOURNAL OF OCCUPATIONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL HYGIENE 2020; 17:59-72. [PMID: 31829796 DOI: 10.1080/15459624.2019.1696969] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
This study aims to characterize airborne particles emitted from a metal additive manufacturing machine and related levels of occupational exposure. To achieve this, a complete measurement methodology was deployed around a direct energy deposition machine. Different operating conditions were investigated, based on configurations of two materials and two injection nozzles. Two replicates were performed for each condition. Airborne particles emitted during repeated manufacturing cycles were measured simultaneously at the source, in the near field, in the far field and on the operator. Real-time instruments were used to characterize the machine emissions (10 nm-10 µm) associated with respirable and inhalable samplers and cascade impactors. Measurements were made during both the manufacturing process and transient operating phases. In parallel, personal exposure to hexavalent chromium was assessed. The number of particles measured for the different machining phases show that high levels of particles (> 5 × 105 # cm-3, 0.3-1.3 mg m-3 inhalable particles, 0.2-6 µg m-3 CrVI) were emitted in the machine enclosure. The size distributions indicate that more than 90% of the particles are smaller than 250 nm. Occupational exposure to CrVI was found to be below the LOQ of 0.098 µg m-3 for the two alloys investigated. During the machining process, near-field number and mass concentrations were ∼ 104 # cm-3, and below 0.04 mg m-3, respectively. Far-field number concentrations were also on the order of 104 # cm-3 throughout the whole monitoring period. The transient phase of door opening was found to result in high levels of exposure (> 105 # cm-3), which were also detected in the near-field, confirming the need to implement preventative actions. To address this issue, a collective protective measure, consisting of setting a time delay of about 8 min between the end of the manufacturing process and opening of the door, could be employed. This collective measure should also be accompanied by the wearing of personal protective equipment by the operator when an intervention in the machine enclosure is necessary.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sébastien Bau
- Department of Pollutant Metrology, Institut National de Recherche et de Sécurité, Vandoeuvre, France
| | - Davy Rousset
- Department of Pollutant Metrology, Institut National de Recherche et de Sécurité, Vandoeuvre, France
| | - Raphaël Payet
- Department of Pollutant Metrology, Institut National de Recherche et de Sécurité, Vandoeuvre, France
| | - François-Xavier Keller
- Department of Process Engineering, Institut National de Recherche et de Sécurité, Vandoeuvre, France
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