PCB, PCDF, and PCDD exposure following a transformer fire: Chicago.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Burton W ; Hinkamp DL ; Hryhorczuk DO ; Kominsky, John R. ; Melius, James M. ; Orris, Peter
• Description:
  The precautionary evacuation of a major Chicago office building was necessitated on September 28, 1983, by an electrical fire in a transformer vault, which resulted in the loss of 15 gallons of transformer oil composed of 65 percent of the polychlorinated- biphenyl (PCB) Aroclor-1260 (11096825) and 35 percent trichlorobenzene (12002481). Environmental sampling showed that PCB contamination was limited to the vault (20,900 micrograms/square foot), the adjacent fan room (22,000 to 39,100 micrograms/gram on the filters), the ventilation shafts from the vault itself (16,800 and 14,300 micrograms/square foot) and the exterior surface of the one story plaza building (8,900 micrograms/square foot). Air levels of PCBs in the vault 4 hours after the fire was 58 micrograms/cubic meter. Analysis of soot from a surface wipe sample taken from the ceiling of the transformer vault showed 114 micrograms/square foot of total polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF) and polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD). A surface wipe sample from the wall of the vault contained 20,900 micrograms/square foot of PCBs. In all four exposed individuals, serum PCB levels were less than the detection limit of 10 parts per billion. No PCDFs or PCDDs were detected. Description provided by NIOSH
• Subjects:
  • Accidents, Occupational
  • Chromatography
  • Environmental Exposure
  • Environmental Pollution
  • Hazardous Substances
  • Hematologic Tests
  • Occupational Health
  • Polychlorinated Biphenyls
  • Safety
  • Safety Management
  More +
• Keywords:
  • NIOSH-Author
  • Environmental-contamination
  • Health-hazards
  • Organic-chemicals
  • Accidents
  • Solvent-extraction
  • Polychlorinated-biphenyls
  • Chromatographic-analysis
  • Safety-monitoring
  • Polychlorinated-hydrocarbons
  More +
• ISSN:
  0045-6535
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Illinois ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  15
• Issue:
  9
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00166763
• Citation:
  Chemosphere 1986 Jan; 15(9-12):1297-1303
• CAS Registry Number:
  • PCB 1260 (CAS RN 11096-82-5)
  • Trichlorobenzene (CAS RN 12002-48-1)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1986
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Chemosphere
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/185117/cdc_185117_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 411.72 KB]
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:dab5f7d7788210ec6c64117900523d4496a5d4d46ef8ffa7c5c41280916225ada15cc8f96a4d8ebf9a870e2f67aa4a6d0871449a15493ef5bdeb2140dbd79572