Validation of evacuated canisters for sampling volatile organic compounds in healthcare settings

Details

• Personal Author:
  Lebouf RF ; Stefaniak, Aleksandr B. ; Virji, M. Abbas
• Description:
  Healthcare settings present a challenging environment for assessing low-level concentrations of specific volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the presence of high background concentrations of alcohol from the use of hand sanitizers and surface disinfectants. The purposes of this laboratory-based project were to develop and validate a sampling and analysis methodology for quantifying low-level VOC concentrations as well as high-level alcohol concentrations found together in healthcare settings. Sampling was conducted using evacuated canisters lined with fused silica. Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis was performed using preconcentration (for ppb levels) and loop injection (for ppm levels). For a select list of 14 VOCs, bias, precision, and accuracy of both the preconcentration and loop injection methods were evaluated, as was analyte stability in evacuated canisters over 30 days. Using the preconcentration (ppb-level) method, all validation criteria were met for 13 of the 14 target analytes-ethanol, acetone, methylene chloride, hexane, chloroform, benzene, methyl methacrylate, toluene, ethylbenzene, m,p-xylene, o-xylene, alpha-pinene, and limonene. Using the loop injection (ppm-level) method, all validation criteria were met for each analyte. At ppm levels, alpha-pinene and limonene remained stable over 21 days, while the rest of the analytes were stable for 30 days. All analytes remained stable over 30 days at ppb levels. This sampling and analysis approach is a viable (i.e., accurate and stable) methodology that will enable development of VOC profiles for mixed exposures experienced by healthcare workers. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Chromatography Disinfectants Health Care Facilities Workforce And Services Occupational Health Safety Solvents
• Keywords:
  Alcohols Analytical-processes Chromatographic-analysis Health-care-facilities Organic-compounds Vapors Volatiles
• ISSN:
  1464-0325
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DRDS - Division of Respiratory Disease Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  14
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20040372
• Citation:
  J Environ Monit 2012 Mar; 14(3):977-983
• Contact Point Address:
  Ryan F. LeBouf, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 1095 Willowdale Road, Morgantown, WV, USA 26505
• Email:
  rlebouf@cdc.gov
• CAS Registry Number:
  Acetone (CAS RN 67-64-1) ; Benzene (CAS RN 71-43-2) ; Chloroform (CAS RN 67-66-3) ; Dichloromethane (CAS RN 75-09-2) ; Ethanol (CAS RN 64-17-5) ; Ethylbenzene (CAS RN 100-41-4) ; Hexane (CAS RN 110-54-3) ; Limonene (CAS RN 138-86-3) ; m-Xylene (CAS RN 108-38-3) ; o-Xylene (CAS RN 95-47-6) ; p-Xylene (CAS RN 106-42-3) ; Toluene (CAS RN 108-88-3)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2012
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Environmental Monitoring
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:b345e00539738cc8cf2620b1f7a8d32fcb33548c1febae4b7efd361da6a563250fe4a915f5535efb032b9aab288f44cb1c98e5b12563d0859dc25231daedf963
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/193275/cdc_193275_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 134.45 KB ]