A New Paradigm for Workplace Air Sampling and Cost-Effective Exposure Assessment

Details

• Personal Author:
  Henry CS ; Ramachandran G ; Volckens J
• Description:
  This project proposed to develop new technologies for assessing airborne exposure hazards in the workplace that are more cost-effective and easier to implement than the current state-of-the-art. The first project output was the development of the UPAS (ultrasonic personal aerosol sampler), a small, quiet air sampler capable of assessing breathing-zone exposures to workplace aerosol hazards. The UPAS has several innovations: (1) it uses piezoelectric micropumps that are small, silent, and energy efficient, allowing the device to weigh 220g while operating for up to 45 hrs (at 1 L/min flow) on a single battery charge; (2) it tracks location (via GPS) and activity (via accelerometry), along with ambient temperature, pressure, and relative humidity (RH) so that the wearer's microenvironments are logged over time; (3) it utilizes micro-mechanical flow sensors to regulate airflow continuously (and without calibration before/after use) to streamline the process of exposure assessment; (4) it uses wireless communication (via a smartphone-based app) for programming, data download, and data transfer. These features allow the UPAS to be deployed in large quantities with less cost and effort than current, state-of-the-art personal air samplers. With the UPAS we also developed a family of size-selective inlets for respirable, thoracic, and fine particulate matter fractions. Performance of the UPAS was validated in both the lab and the field. The technology was patented and commercialized in 2017. The second project output was the development of novel microfluidic technologies for quantifying levels of metals and bacteria/viruses. For quantifying metals, we had several significant innovations: (1) we demonstrated methods to improve the sensitivity of the assays by simply changing the geometry; (2) we developed a new detection method based on colorimetry called 'dip-and-read' that simplifies the overall analysis process; (3) we developed an electrochemical system that had both steady state and fast flow relative to traditional methods with the resulting single showing a significant enhancement in signal. For bacteria/virus detection, we also had several significant innovations: (1) we discovered that the fast flow system could also improve the signal for bacterial detection; (2) we showed that the system could be used for virus detection; (3) we developed new methods based on immunoassays and nucleic acid amplification to detect aerosolized virus particles to overcome limitations with enzyme activity detection. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Aerosols Environmental Monitoring Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Aerosol Sampling Air Sampling Equipment Bacteria Breathing Zone Equipment Design Exposure Assessment Microbial Test Systems Samplers Wearable Technologies
• Series:
  Grant Final Reports
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Final Grant Report
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; Maryland ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 8
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OEP - Office of Extramural Programs
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-30
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20062894
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2022-100482
• Citation:
  Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, R01-OH-010662, 2021 Jan; :1-30
• Contact Point Address:
  John Volckens, Professor, Mechanical Engineering Colorado State University, 1374 Campus Delivery, Fort Collins, CO 80523
• Email:
  john.volckens@colostate.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2021
• Performing Organization:
  Colorado State University, Fort Collins
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20150901
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20190831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:41a80b0ddfa3508d66187c745a25e96df7b8faa366e4400b13dd85b507cfc557d020222c80016e5181a738b5d5f71ae46744b7588b0409d44fcce6139aac5b48
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/219057/cdc_219057_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.47 MB ]