Exposure to Nanoparticles - Environmental and Human Health Impacts of Nanotechnology - page 339

Table 8.5 Summary of aerosol exposure by industry, process and activity.

Industry Measurements (range) Activity Ref

3470-49 900 particles/cm 3 Carbon Black Bagging Wake (2001)

inhalable < LoD − 37 mg/m 3 Manufacture Gardiner (1992,

1996)

respirable < LoD − 7 mg/m 3 Manufacture van Tongeren

(2000, 2001)

Nickel powder 3670-21 200 particles/cm 3 Bagging Wake (2001)

Precious metal
blacks

23 106-70 745 particles/cm 3 Sieving Wake (2001)

Titanium dioxide 4150-16 615 particles/cm 3 Bagging Wake (2001)

4998-21 167 particles/cm 3 Dust prep

Pharmaceutical 0.1-2.7 mg/m 3 Powder handling Naumann (1997)

Thermal coating 3590-11 200 particles/cm 3 Wire coat Wake (2001)

2820-11 300 particles/cm 3 Auto

11 700-25 900 particles/cm 3 Hand

Zinc refi ning 12 000-54 000 particles/cm 3 Sintering Wake (2001)

42 000-680 000 particles/cm 3 Refi nery top

56 000-100 000 particles/cm 3 Refi nery fl oor

Aluminium
smelter

Rotary furnace Healy (2001)

800-3700 µ g/m 3

Welding 117 649- > 500 000 particles/cm 3 MIG Wake (2001)

65 512-278 170 particles/cm 3 MMA

Hand soldering 11 752- > 500 000 particles/cm 3 Tinning Wake (2001)

LoD = limit of detection.

been provided. It is interesting to note that the number concentrations from
powder handling processes are of a similar magnitude as those which might
be considered to be ' bad ' environmental pollution. Much higher number concen-
trations were seen in activities such as welding that in powder handling
processes.

8.3.5 Numbers of People Potentially Exposed

Nanotechnology is not a single technology. It is a multidisciplinary grouping
of physical, chemical, biological engineering and electronic processes, materials,
and so on, in which the unifying characteristic is one of size. Up until now, there
has been little attempt to estimate the numbers of people who may be exposed
occupationally to these materials. For example in the United States, NIOSH
is ' unaware ' of any comprehensive statistics on the number of people employed
in all occupations or industries in which they might be exposed to engineered,
nano-diameter particles in the production or use of nanomaterials (NIOSH,
2007 ).