Control Technology for Crystalline Silica Exposures in Construction: Wet Abrasive Blasting

Details

• Personal Author:
  Golla V ; Heitbrink, William A. ; Mazzuckelli, Larry
• Description:
  This study was designed to document the effect that wet abrasive blasting has on reducing worker exposure to crystalline silica, which has been associated with silicosis and premature death. In this study, worker exposure to respirable crystalline silica was monitored during wet abrasive blasting on the exterior walls of a parking garage to remove surface concrete and expose the underlying aggregate. In this process a wet sand mix comprised of 80% dry sand and 20% water was used. Sampling and analysis revealed that the geometric mean respirable quartz concentration was 0.2 mg/m(3) for workers conducting abrasive blasting and 0.06 mg/m(3) for helpers. When abrasive blasting was conducted in areas that apparently had reduced natural ventilation, dust exposures appeared to increase. When compared with other published data, this case study suggests that wet abrasive blasting causes less exposure to crystalline silica than dry abrasive blasting. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Aerosols Dust Occupational Health Particulate Matter Quartz Safety Silicon Dioxide Workplace
• Keywords:
  Aerosol-particles Dust-exposure Dust-particles Dusts Masons Particulate-dust Particulates Quartz-dust Respirable-dust Sampling-methods Sand-blasting Silica-dusts Work-areas Work-environment

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• ISSN:
  1545-9624
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Iowa ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 7
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DART - Division of Applied Research and Technology
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  1
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20031629
• Citation:
  J Occup Environ Hyg 2004 Mar; 1(3):D26-D32
• Contact Point Address:
  V Golla, Univ Iowa, Dept Occupat & Environm Hlth, Iowa City, IA 52242
• CAS Registry Number:
  Quartz (SiO2) (CAS RN 14808-60-7)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2004
• Performing Organization:
  University of Iowa
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  1741 - Masonry and other stonework - (SIC)
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
• End Date:
  20290630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:5dd1e57ade6e3cba50199167cf25f35287aaec8d0dee16c08af9cd67c429ec1a6213d38fae9fba75a453f2c1e3f04c9f96b72c533dd4e3ecc1e00fd499c0fa88
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/185870/cdc_185870_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.73 MB ]