Respirable dust control in grinding gray iron castings.

Details

• Personal Author:
  Baron, Paul A. ; O'Brien, Dennis M. ; Willeke K
• Description:
  Methods for controlling respirable dusts during high speed grinding of gray iron castings were evaluated. A pilot grinding operation consisting of a 0.76 meter (m) diameter grinder containing a 5 centimeter (cm) wide, 14 grit zirconia aluminum-oxide alloy, resinoid bond, fiberglass reinforced wheel was installed in a walk in enclosure. Grinding of 2.5cm by 30cm gray iron bars was performed at surface speeds of 49.8 to 62.0m/second using an automatic feed to maintain constant metal to wheel force for a 10 second grinding cycle. The grinder was exhausted at a basic rate of between 0.49 and 0.88m3/s. The size distribution and concentration of airborne particles produced by grinding were measured with an aerodynamic particle sizer. Effects of control measures such as increasing exhaust ventilation, installing baffles, or using an air jet to deflect the entrained air stream on the concentration and distribution of the particles were evaluated. Number spectra of the particle size distributions obtained during grinding and application of control measures were presented. Increasing the grinding rate increased the number of particles and median particle size. Baffles, when used alone at a ventilation rate of 0.57m3/s, reduced the concentration of respirable dust by 50 percent. When used in combination with the air jet, the baffles reduced respirable dust particle concentrations by a factor of 3 to 4. Increased exhaust ventilation plus the baffles plus the air jet reduced the concentration of respirable dust particles by about 20 fold. The authors note that contamination of the breathing zone can occur by deflection of the airstream by either the casting or the worker's body. Results in an actual production setting may differ in magnitude from those obtained in the study since the worker's technique, size and shape of the casting, cleanliness of the casting surface, and room air currents were not taken into account. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Dust Metal Workers Occupational Health Safety Workplace
• Keywords:
  Abrasive-grinding Dust-control Dust-control-equipment Grinding-equipment Metal-workers Metallic-dusts NIOSH-Author NIOSH-Grant NIOSH-Publication Respirable-dust Workplace-studies

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• ISSN:
  0002-8894
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DPSE - Division of Physical Sciences and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  181-187
• Volume:
  48
• Issue:
  2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00167128
• Citation:
  Am Ind Hyg Assoc J 1987 Feb; 48(2):181-187
• Contact Point Address:
  Environmental Health University of Cincinnati Dept of Environmental Health Cincinnati, Ohio 45267
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1987
• Performing Organization:
  University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  19810701
• Source Full Name:
  American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal
• End Date:
  19920831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:811bb042de56efda6f32a9cab046bb15c0301391cdb749051c08090dc493a75ac3c4e4b8b7266f0989e2cfb58300e2318ccf03ca5d5ad4024f987830cc450ebd
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/185125/cdc_185125_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 418.62 KB ]