Health Hazard Evaluation Report: HETA-82-292-1358: SEA Road Construction; State of Wisconsin

Details

• Personal Author:
  Daniels, William J. ; Kramkowski, Richard S.
• Corporate Authors:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Description:
  Environmental samples were analyzed for sulfur (7704349), hydrogen- sulfide (7783064), sulfur-dioxide (7446095), and particulates for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (SIC-1611) on State Highway 31 west of Racine, Wisconsin in June 1982. The survey was requested by a representative of the Wisconsin Operating Engineers on behalf of employees working on paving projects because of possible hazards associated with using sulfur extended asphalt. Workers reported nosebleeds, chapped and split lips, severe sunburn, and extreme nausea and vomiting. Breathing zone air samples were analyzed for sulfur, hydrogen-sulfide, sulfur-dioxide, and particulates. Long- and short-term samples revealed no detectable concentrations of sulfur-dioxide. Hydrogen-sulfide was detectable in only trace amounts. Respirable particulates were composed entirely of sulfur. One personal air sample was above the OSHA standard for total particulates of 5.0 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3). This sample had a particulate concentration of 5.1mg/m3. Effects of long-term exposure on workers could not be determined. The author concludes th t particulate sulfur emissions from sulfur extended asphalt causes eye and upper respiratory mucous membrane irritation. It is recommended that asphalt temperatures be maintained below 300 degrees-F to reduce gaseous emission does not occur. Eye protection and respirators should be made available.
• Subjects:
  Irritants Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Breathing-atmospheres Clinical-symptoms Employee-exposure Hazard-Confirmed HETA-82-292-1358 Highway And Street Construction, Except Elevated Highways Irritation NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Health-Hazard-Evaluation NIOSH-Technical-Assistance-Report OSHA Region 5 Respiratory-irritants SEA Sulfur Sulfur Extended Asphalt

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• Series:
  Health Hazard Evaluation Reports (HHE)
• Subseries:
  Health Evaluation and Technical Assistance (HETA)
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHHETA822921358
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Wisconsin ; OSHA Region 5
• 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:
  24 pdf pages
• Contributor:
  Almaguer, Daniel
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00134193
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB85-163558
• 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 82-292-1358, 1983 Aug ; :1-22
• CAS Registry Number:
  Sulfur (CAS RN 7704-34-9) ; Hydrogen sulfide (CAS RN 7783-06-4) ; Sulfur dioxide (CAS RN 7446-09-5)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1983
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  1611 - Highway and street construction - (SIC)
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:986ec9564bbd3a49dcb61a6c657b0e4ce8e33c441130521e59c4842842f6f873fdb243c0a19bb402261e7581f209e0a06a9e8c328bff9b0b3c6d052c9e549d24
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/172873/cdc_172873_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.94 MB ]