What Does Respirator Certification Tell Us About Filtration of Ultrafine Particles

Details

• Personal Author:
  Eninger RM ; Grinshpun SA ; Honda T ; McKay R ; Reponen T ; Eninger RM ; Grinshpun SA ; Honda T ; McKay R ; Reponen T
• Description:
  Recent interest in exposures to ultrafine particles (less than 100 nm) in both environmental and occupational settings led the authors to question whether the protocols used to certify respirator filters provide adequate attention to ultrafine aerosols. The authors reviewed the particle size distribution of challenge aerosols and evaluated the aerosol measurement method currently employed in the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) particulate respirator certification protocol for its ability to measure the contribution of ultrafine particles to filter penetration. Also considered were the differences between mechanical and electrically charged (electret) filters in light of the most penetrating particle size. It was found that the sodium chloride (NaCl) and dioctylphthalate (DOP) aerosols currently used in respirator certification tests contain a significant fraction of particles in the ultrafine region. However, the photometric method deployed in the certification test is not capable of adequately measuring light scatter of particles below approximately 100 nm in diameter. Specifically, 68% (by count) and 8% (by mass) of the challenge NaCl aerosol particles and 10% (by count) and 0.3% (by mass) of the DOP particles below 100 nm do not significantly contribute to the filter penetration measurement. In addition, the most penetrating particle size for electret filters likely occurs at 100 nm or less under test conditions similar to those used in filter certification. The authors conclude, therefore, that the existing NIOSH certification protocol may not represent a worst-case assessment for electret filters because it has limited ability to determine the contribution of ultrafine aerosols, which include the most penetrating particle size for electret filters. Possible strategies to assess ultrafine particle penetration in the certification protocol are discussed. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Aerosols Air Pollutants, Occupational Air Pollution Air Pollution, Indoor Environmental Monitoring Microbiology Occupational Health Particulate Matter Respiratory System Safety
• Keywords:
  Air-contamination Air-quality Air-samples Air-sampling Air-sampling-equipment Airborne-particles Exposure-assessment Exposure-methods Inhalation-studies Microbial-test-systems Nanotechnology Particle-aerodynamics Particulate-dust Particulate-sampling-methods Sampling Sampling-methods Statistical-analysis

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• ISSN:
  1545-9624
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article ; Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) ; National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health ; Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America ; North America
• Pages in Document:
  286-295
• Volume:
  5
• Issue:
  5
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20033411
• Citation:
  J Occup Environ Hyg 2008 May; 5(5):286-295
• Contact Point Address:
  Sergey A. Grinshpun, University of Cincinnati, Department of Environmental Health, 3223 Eden Ave., POB 670056, Cincinnati, OH 45267-0056
• Email:
  sergey.grinshpun@uc.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2008
• Performing Organization:
  University of Cincinnati
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0ef941927b5c0f578779c76daf4e6b5ebd234c104d2d75d27389f3aa8241d2d48a09e495b892625f6532b925cd345ae47b2a60bac165d63235c74314309c00eb
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/189001/cdc_189001_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 743.50 KB ]