Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-83-376-1556: Portsmouth Naval Shipyard; Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Details

• Personal Author:
  Singal, Mitchell ; Tharr, Dawn G.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Area air samples were analyzed for acrolein (107028), aldehydes, organic solvents, acids, and phthalates at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (SIC-3731), Portsmouth, New Hampshire in December 1983. The evaluation was requested by a union representative due to employee reports of headache, nausea, and other irritative symptoms during systems testing on a submarine being overhauled at the shipyard. Nine workers involved in the systems testing were interviewed. Acrolein concentrations ranged from 0.057 to 0.085 part per million (ppm). The OSHA standard for acrolein is 0.1ppm. Twelve other organic substances were detected, ranging in concentration up to 14.8 milligrams per cubic meter for naphtha. No hydrochloric-acid or phthalates were detected. Eight workers reported eye irritation. Five reported throat irritation, headache, and other chest symptoms. Four reported nasal irritation. All symptomatic workers reported that their symptoms began within 30 minutes after entering the work areas. The authors conclude that the reported symptoms are due to combined effects of acrolein and other aldehydes. Due to the relatively low concentration involved, the risk of chronic health effects seems slight. Recommendations include properly ventilating the affected work areas and using respiratory personal protective equipment.
• Subjects:
  Aldehydes Benzene Environmental Health Eye Foreign Bodies Formaldehyde Occupational Health Safety Ships Solvents
• Keywords:
  Acrolein Analytical-models Environmental-factors Eye Irritation Hazards-Confirmed HETA-83-376-1556 NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report OSHA Region 1 Shipbuilding-industry Ship Building And Repairing Workers

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA833761556
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  New Hampshire ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  15 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  McManus, Kevin ; Jenkins, Sharon ; Jolliffe, Lynette K.
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00153391
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB86-133683
• Citation:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HETA 83-376-1556, 1985 Apr ; :1-14
• CAS Registry Number:
  Acrolein (CAS RN 107-02-8)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1985
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  3731 - Ship building and repairing - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:fb7f6771e7cbf227a6c17aa8f94cf09b8c47a066803db9c39e5457e27393a13372587d22bc2724ebee07fdf4e0132d298179c9a68777797dc1ff35b2e79ce60f
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172287/cdc_172287_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.97 MB ]