U.S. flag An official website of the United States government.
Official websites use .gov

A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS

A lock ( ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

i

An Evaluation of Quartz as a Component of Respirable Coal Dust



Details

  • Personal Author:
  • Description:
    The rising cases of coal worker's pneumoconiosis since the early 2000s have driven research into respirable coal dust. Prolonged quartz dust exposure is deemed to be the primary cause of the resurgence in pneumoconiosis. This study examines how quartz present in coals of various ranks produces hydroxyl radicals (oOH), a reactive oxygen species linked to particle toxicity. This study evaluates the ability of safe chemical additives to reduce oOH production of the coal-quartz samples at various pH levels. Promising chemicals were investigated in different solutions, including tap and process waters and simulated lung fluid (SLF). We combined insights from electrokinetic measurements, infrared and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies, and ab initio atomistic simulations to study the quartz particle surfaces. The study also explored how surface aging impacts quartz oOH production. The results reveal that oOH generation of the quartz varies and is enhanced by iron contamination, as also confirmed by ab initio simulations. Iron also enhances hydroxamic acid adsorption, leading to stronger interaction of the reagent on the quartz surface. Fresh quartz surfaces are particularly prone to generating more oOH in alkaline conditions. Carboxymethyl cellulose was notably effective in inhibiting quartz oOH by about 91 % at pH 7 in deionized water. The production of oOH was minimal in SLF compared to other tested solutions. The negative charge on quartz surface in various aqueous solutions was found to impact oOH generation. Quartz surface aging results in a gradual decrease in oOH generation due to the decay of surface siloxyl radicals. [Description provided by NIOSH]
  • Subjects:
  • Keywords:
  • ISSN:
    0304-3894
  • Document Type:
    Text
  • Funding:
    Contract
  • Genre:
    Journal Article
  • Place as Subject:
  • CIO:
    National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
  • Topic:
    Workplace Safety & Health
  • Location:
    North America
  • Volume:
    490
  • NIOSHTIC Number:
    nn:20070685
  • Citation:
    J Hazard Mater 2025 Jun; 490:137873
  • Contact Point Address:
    Barbara J. Arnold, John and Willie Leone Family Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering, College of Earth and Mineral Science, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
  • Email:
    bja4@psu.edu
  • CAS Registry Number:
    Quartz (SiO2) (CAS RN 14808-60-7)
  • Federal Fiscal Year:
    2025
  • Performing Organization:
    Pennsylvania State University
  • Peer Reviewed:
    True
  • Start Date:
    20210901
  • Source Full Name:
    Journal of Hazardous Materials
  • End Date:
    20240331
  • Collection(s):
  • Main Document Checksum:
    urn:sha-512:dd19caea1578260ad63842e654d6f4315f97813357213d96fda3ce2c6a05208ac7ed9188c420c1a051289d67db6bf678a67e24ceca30d34593d2f520cfe5c9aa
  • Download URL:
  • File Type:
    Filetype[PDF - 4.75 MB ]
PREVIOUS
ON THIS PAGE
Details
CDC STACKS serves as an archival repository of CDC-published products including scientific findings, journal articles, guidelines, recommendations, or other public health information authored or co-authored by CDC or funded partners.

As a repository, CDC STACKS retains documents in their original published format to ensure public access to scientific information.
BACK TO TOP