Whole-Glove Permeation Testing of Disposable Gloves with Simulated Movement

Details

• Personal Author:
  Phalen R
• Description:
  According to NIOSH, more than 13 million workers are exposed to chemicals that can be absorbed through the skin. In addition, about 2.9 million workers suffer from dermatitis each year in the United States. One critical gap in knowledge is the protection afforded by chemical protective clothing under worker-use conditions. The aim of this study was to develop a method to conduct whole-glove chemical permeation testing with simulated movement. First, a novel method was developed to measure bi-directional stretching at the different regions of the glove. Measurements were taken on gloved hands with both extension and flexion hand postures. The gloves were then inflated using pressures ranging from 0.06 to 0.12 inches of water to determine the optimal pressure that would simulate the hand postures. A three-inch outer collar was used at the cuff to restrict inflation in this region. Inflation and deflation of the glove were controlled using an available pneumatic controller. Permeation testing of disposable nitrile gloves was conducted using ethanol. Continuous monitoring was performed with a photoionization detector in a closed loop. The normalized breakthrough time (NBT) was 12.5 +/- 1.9 min with movement and 14.6 +/- 2.2 min without (p ≤ 0.05). The steady-state permeation rate was 10.5 +/- 1.6 microg/cm²/min with movement and 8.7 +/- 1.1 microg/cm²/min without (p ≤ 0.05). Overall, whole-glove movement decreased the NBT by more than 14%, and increased chemical permeation by greater than 20%. For a 30-minute exposure, the average permeation rate with movement (2.6 +/- 1.3 microg/cm²/min) was twice (p ≤ 0.05) that without movement (1.3 +/- 0.7 microg/cm²/min). Simulated hand movement significantly affected the permeation of ethanol through a disposable nitrile glove. The methods developed in this study can be used to evaluate whole-glove performance and the influence of hand movement on chemical permeation. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Protective Clothing Safety Skin Skin Absorption
• Keywords:
  Chemicals Gloves Hand Protection Personal Protective Equipment PPE Simulation Methods Skin Absorption Skin Exposure
• Publisher:
  American Industrial Hygiene Association
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  California ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  36
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20058543
• Citation:
  AIHce 2009: American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition, May 30 - June 4, 2009, Toronto, Canada. Fairfax, VA: American Industrial Hygiene Association, 2009 May; :36
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2009
• Performing Organization:
  University of California Los Angeles
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  AIHce 2009: American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition, May 30 - June 4, 2009, Toronto, Canada
• End Date:
  20270630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0587c5daecc1df55167c6d8c513ad343125152eb42f1475554650184be271bfc5207980d4c7a5901bb8706f6dfb421799963e72c10707878c148a56ec95a02f2
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/221608/cdc_221608_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 171.87 KB ]