Occupational exposure to airborne ultrafine particles in various industrial workplaces

Abstract

Integral part of risk assessment of workplaces includes detailed characterization of airborne aerosols in case of such a considerable risk present in workplace atmosphere. Size, particle size distribution and chemical characterization of ultrafi ne particles in various industrial workplaces are systematically studied by set of techniques including the wide range size resolving sampling system Nano-ID® Select followed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) exploited for chemical analysis, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Fast Mobility Particle Sizing (FMPS) and Lung Deposited Surface Area Monitoring (LDSA). Results obtained from expertise on particle fractionated mass and the calculated deposition fraction in various compartments of the respiratory system using the ICRP lung deposition model suggest suitability of size-selective sampling and size-related assessment not only for engineered nanoobjects and their aggregates and agglomerates, but also for inadvertently produced emissions of present-day technologies.