Evaluation of Occupational Brake Dust Exposures at a Hydroelectric Dam

Details

• Personal Author:
  Feldmann, Karl D. ; King, Bradley S.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  The Health Hazard Evaluation Program received a request from a safety manager at a hydroelectric dam. The manager was concerned about employee exposures to elements (metals and minerals) in brake dust when cleaning the brake and brush housings of hydroelectric turbine generators. While employees cleaned a generator during a scheduled shutdown, we collected air samples, work surface and hand wipes, and brake dust samples for elemental analysis. Airborne exposures to elements were well below their most protective occupational exposure limits for all powerhouse employees, regardless of work activity or location within the powerhouse. Sampling results showed that brake dust could escape from the interior of the turbine housing. Elements were detected at low concentrations on hands and work surfaces. Hand cleaning practices, the availability of disposable clothing, and the use of sticky mats helped reduce the migration of contaminants from work areas to non-work areas. We recommended evaluating employee's exposures to elements in the air during brake dust cleaning of the other two generators.
• Subjects:
  • Air Pollutants, Occupational
  • Air Pollution
  • Aluminum Compounds
  • Chromium
  • Confined Spaces
  • Dust
  • Ferrous Compounds
  • Hazardous Substances
  • Manganese
  • Metals
  More +
• Keywords:
  • OSHA Region 10
  • Employee exposure
  • Metal compounds
  • Metal dusts
  • Minerals
  • Mineral dusts
  • Elements
  • Mechanical cleaning
  • Power generation
  • Dust analysis
  More +
• Source:
  Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, HHE 2015-0047-3276, 2017 May ; :1-19
• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHHE201500473276
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Idaho ; OSHA Region 10
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies ; WSD - Western States Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  26 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Booher, Donald E. ; Fernback, Joe ; Galloway, Ellen ; Harney, Joshua M. ; Moore, Kevin ; Neumeister, Chuck ; Taylor, Alan ; Watts, Shawna
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20049858
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2017-102700
• Citation:
  NIOSH 2017. Evaluation of occupational brake dust exposures at a hydroelectric ; dam. By Feldmann KD, King B. Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and ; Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for ; Occupational Safety and Health, NIOSH Health Hazard Evaluation Report 2015-0047- ; 3276,
• CAS Registry Number:
  • Aluminum (CAS RN 7429-90-5)
  • Chromium (CAS RN 7440-47-3)
  • Iron (CAS RN 7439-89-6)
  • Manganese (CAS RN 7439-96-5)
  • Zinc (CAS RN 7440-66-6)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• NORA Priority Area:
  Services
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  221111 - Hydroelectric Power Generation - (NAICS)
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172389/cdc_172389_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.76 MB]
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:5b2f966f831b77c0e1aec9b7e5b40f7b92f6fc0bc0dc7de49ca814bb78d05b1423e2c33aab6a682b3ed736824f0709c25e41ceb68a6db3776fe1ebc342797f50