Breakthrough curves for toluene adsorption on different types of activated carbon fibers: application in respiratory protection

Details

• Personal Author:
  Balanay JG ; Floyd EL ; Lungu CT
• Description:
  Activated carbon fibers (ACF) are considered viable alternative adsorbent materials in respirators because of their larger surface area, lighter weight, and fabric form. The purpose of this study was to characterize the breakthrough curves of toluene for different types of commercially available ACFs to understand their potential service lives in respirators. Two forms of ACF, cloth (AC) and felt (AF), with three surface areas each were tested. ACFs were challenged with six toluene concentrations (50-500 p.p.m.) at constant air temperature (23 degrees C), relative humidity (50%), and air flow (16 l min-1) at different bed depths. Breakthrough data were obtained using continuous monitoring by gas chromatography using a gas sampling valve. The ACF specific surface areas were measured by an automatic physisorption analyzer. Results showed unique shapes of breakthrough curves for each ACF form: AC demonstrated a gradual increase in breakthrough concentration, whereas AF showed abrupt increase in concentration from the breakpoint, which was attributed to the difference in fiber density between the forms. AF has steeper breakthrough curves compared with AC with similar specific surface area. AC exhibits higher 10% breakthrough times for a given bed depth due to higher mass per bed depth compared with AF, indicating more adsorption per bed depth with AC. ACF in respirators may be appropriate for use as protection in environments with toluene concentration at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Permissible Exposure Limit, or during emergency escape for higher toluene concentrations. ACF has shown great potential for application in respiratory protection against toluene and in the development of thinner, lighter, and more efficient respirators. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Air Movements Air Pollutants, Occupational Filtration Laboratories Manufacturing And Industrial Facilities Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Respiratory Protective Devices Safety Solvents Toluene

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• Keywords:
  Adsorption Air-filters Air-flow Author Keywords: Activated Carbon Fiber Breakthrough Carbon-compounds Cloth-filters Equipment-design Equipment-reliability Filter-fabrics Filter-materials Gas-chromatography Gases Laboratory-testing Materials-testing Monitors Performance-capability Personal-protective-equipment Respirators Respiratory-protection Respiratory-protective-equipment Respiratory Protection Service Life Testing-equipment Toluene Toluenes Vapors

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• ISSN:
  0003-4878
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Alabama ; North Carolina ; Oklahoma ; OSHA Region 4 ; OSHA Region 6
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  481-490
• Volume:
  59
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20045477
• Citation:
  Ann Occup Hyg 2015 May; 59(4):481-490
• Contact Point Address:
  Jo Anne G. Balanay, Environmental Health Sciences Program, Department of Health Education and Promotion, East Carolina University, 300 Curry Court, 3407 Carol Belk Building, Greenville, NC 27858
• Email:
  balanayj@ecu.edu
• CAS Registry Number:
  Toluene (CAS RN 108-88-3)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2015
• Performing Organization:
  University of Alabama at Birmingham
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Annals of Occupational Hygiene
• End Date:
  20270630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:df83734dca50df2a96b616d2d714761632706ced4375e3a23b0bb37dbcce5f3d6c64337538e4340b7d46ca1603be0d396dc2835c60b1da3a3ce0ed4c67d97cb2
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/200883/cdc_200883_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 952.52 KB ]