Development of a Field Analysis Method for Metallic Aerosols in Welding Fumes

Details

• Personal Author:
  Dydak U ; Klicker-Wiechmann JR ; Lee CG ; Lee JH ; Liu S ; Park JH
• Description:
  Workers are exposed to metallic aerosols produced during manufacturing processes such as welding. Welding fumes inhaled by welders generally contain large amounts of metals like iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn) which can negatively impact worker health. Identifying the size, composition, and quantity of metallic aerosols in welding fumes is essential for assessing the risks of workplace exposures. The industry gold standard for characterizing metallic aerosols involves collecting samples using a respirable sampler and sending them to third-party labs for metal analysis using inductively coupled plasma (ICP) techniques. However, conventional respirable sampling cannot provide detailed size information and the ICP techniques are expensive and time-consuming. To overcome these limitations, a cascade impactor and X-ray fluorescence (FP-XRF) were combined. Specifically, the cascade impactor was used to collect aerosols by size and then metal contents in the collected aerosols were analyzed using the FP-XRF. To test this method, area sampling was conducted near welding stations in a local truck-trailer manufacturing facility. The metal contents in the collected aerosols were analyzed using both FP-XRF and ICP-optical emission spectroscopy (OES) and the correction factors were calculated. After applying the correction factors to the results from FP-XRF, the concentrations of metals were calculated by dividing the mass collected by the sampling volume. On average, the combined mass concentration of iron across each stage from the six sampling locations totaled 268 µg/m3 which was 7.2 times higher than the manganese concentration of 38 µg/m3. Two modes were found in the size distribution for Fe. One was located at a particle size smaller than 0.25 µm (235 µg/m3) and the other was located at a particle size larger than 2.5 µm (11 µg/m3). The singular mode of Mn size distribution was observed at a particle size smaller than 0.25 µm (34 µg/m3). The results show the feasibility to overcome the limitation of the conventional methods. This alternative method can allow industrial hygienists to provide a more detailed understanding of metallic aerosol exposure characteristics and be also applied to further research on exposures to metallic aerosols in various occupational settings. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Aerosols Occupational Health Safety Welding
• Keywords:
  Aerosol Sampling Analytical Methods Risk Assessment Welding Fumes X-ray Fluorescence Analysis
• ISSN:
  1096-6080
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  Indiana ; Michigan ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  192
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20067217
• Citation:
  Toxicologist 2023 Mar; 192(S1):274
• CAS Registry Number:
  Iron (CAS RN 7439-89-6) ; Manganese (CAS RN 7439-96-5)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2023
• Performing Organization:
  University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  The Toxicologist. Society of Toxicology 62nd Annual Meeting & ToxExpo, March 19-23, 2023, Nashville, Tennessee
• End Date:
  20280630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:8b3ef66f7ad99a5039993b1f37b597bf8650f0365dce49bad2632e873d9717ca8b63fcb1b97550eccd1e608421cc6a6fac5bf5122896322b0d6ed8c6e146c7ab
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/231344/cdc_231344_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.09 MB ]