Effects of Breathing Rate and Activity Level of Efficiency of Respirators

Details

• Personal Author:
  Cho K ; Jones S ; Reponen T
• Description:
  A parametric evaluation of the effects of breathing rate and work activity level on workplace protection factors (WPFs) provided by two common types of respirators (an elastomeric respirator and an N95 filtering facepiece respirator) will be conducted through laboratory and field experiments. First specific aim is to evaluate the effects of breathing rate and work activity level on WPFs of respirators in actual work places. Eight human subjects will be selected for the field sampling among the subjects that have been recruited for an ongoing NIOSH-funded study. Since heart rate is known to be correlated with activity level and age, heart rate will be used as the primary surrogate for work activity level. Work activity level also affects breathing rate, which may also affect the WPF. While heart and breathing rate correlate with level of physical activity, it may not be possible to differentiate the relative contribution of each. In the field sampling, WPF will be determined for 15 min at three different activity levels such as walking, feeding animals, and shoveling/spreading, with simultaneous measurement of heart rate and breathing rate using a LifeShirt system (RAE Systems Inc., USA). LifeShirt is a lightweight chest strap embedded with sensors which can measure several life sign parameters: breathing rate, heart activity, position, activity, skin temperature and movements of the person. While the first two parameters are the primary targets in this study, we will also explore the usefulness of the other parameters during this pilot study. Second specific aim is to evaluate the effect of breathing rate alone on the particle penetration in manikin-based laboratory experiments. Breathing rate of each human subjects tested in the field will be replicated in the laboratory. Particle penetration through the respirator filter will be determined when the respirator is fully sealed on a manikin face, and penetration through the faceseal leaks will be tested using artificial leaks. Comparison of field and laboratory data will give insights of the effects of breathing rate vs. human activity level on the WPF. Furthermore, faceseal leakage will be estimated by deducting filter penetration, which will be obtained from the laboratory experiment, from total penetration, which will be attained from the field experiment. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Cardiovascular System Elastomers Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Respiratory Protective Devices Safety
• Keywords:
  Effectiveness Research Elastomeric Half-mask Respirators Filters Heart Rate Humans N95 Filtering Facepiece Respirators Particulate Filtering Facepiece Respirators Personal Protective Equipment PPE Sensors Wearable Technologies

  More +
• Publisher:
  University of Cincinnati
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  Kentucky ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 4 ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20052666
• Citation:
  9th Annual Pilot Research Project Symposium, University of Cincinnati Education and Research Center, October 2-3, 2008, Cincinnati, Ohio. Cincinnati, OH: University of Cincinnati, 2008 Oct; :1
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2009
• Performing Organization:
  University of Cincinnati
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  9th Annual Pilot Research Project Symposium, University of Cincinnati Education and Research Center, October 2-3, 2008, Cincinnati, Ohio
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:23b3ad29be9a9abf5031a1a73c7bca53e9d970170737af7f529f4aabefd0b58878ff23f302e3a26fd514846c11a21882cac0acdc60036c6b29f0071a0e829fee
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/212165/cdc_212165_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 115.77 KB ]