Introduction

to
INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE
 Industrial Hygiene
 “that science or art devoted to the
anticipation, recognition, evaluation, and
control of those environmental factors or
stresses, arising in or from the
workplace, that may cause sickness,
impaired health and well-being, or
significant discomfort and inefficiency
among workers”
 History
 Circa 400 BC
– lead toxicity in mining (Hippocrates)
 500 years later
– Pliny the Elder, a Roman scholar
– zinc and sulfur hazards
– protective mask
 History
 2nd Century AD
– Galen
• copper miners exposure to acid mists
 1473
– Ulrich Ellenbog
• publication n occupational illness in gold miners
 History
 1556
– Agricola, German scholar
• diseases of coal miners
• preventive measures
• publication - De Re Metallica
 1700’s
– Bernardino Ramazzini
• father of industrial hygiene
 OSH Act of 1970
 The purpose of the OSH Act is to

“assure so far as possible every working,

man and woman in the nation safe and
healthful working conditions and to
preserve our human resources.”
 Environmental
Factors or Stresses
 Chemical hazards
– gases, vapors, dusts, fumes, mists, and smoke

 Physical hazards
– non-ionizing and ionizing radiation, noise,
vibration, extreme temperatures and pressures
 Environmental
Factors or Stresses
 Ergonomic hazards
– workstation design, repetitive motion, improper
lifting/reaching, poor visual conditions
 Biological hazards
– insects, mold, yeast, fungi, bacteria, and viruses
 Routes of Entry
 Inhalation
– airborne contaminants
 Absorption
– penetration through the skin
 Ingestion
– eating
– drinking
 OSHA Hierarchy of Control
Engineering controls

Work practice controls

Administrative controls

Personal protective equipment (PPE)

 Types of Exposure
 Acute
– Short term period between exposure and onset
of symptoms
 Chronic
– Long time period between exposure to an agent
and the onset of symptoms
 Types of Air Contaminants
 Particulates
– dusts, fumes, mists, and fibers
– non respirable particles
• > 10 m in diameter

– respirable particles
• < 10 m in diameter
 Types of Air Contaminants
 Fumes
– volatilized solids condenses in cool air
• < 1.0 m in diameter
– hot vapor + air (reaction with) = oxide
 Mists
– suspended solid droplets
– generated by a condensation of liquids from a
vapors to a liquid state
 Types of Air Contaminants
 Fibers
– solid, slender, elongated structures
– length several times the diameter
 Gases
– formless fluids that expand to occupy a space
• arc-welding, internal combustion engine exhaust air
 Vapors
– liquid changed to vapor
• organic solvents
 Units of Concentration
 ppm
– parts per million
 mg/m3
– milligrams per cubic meter
 mppcf
– millions or a particle per cubic foot
 f/cc
– fibers per cubic centimeter
 Exposure Limits
Air Contaminants
 OSHA
– Occupational Safety and Health Administration
 NIOSH
– National Institute of Occupational Safety and
Health
 ACGIH
– American Conference of Governmental
Industrial Hygienists
 Exposure Limits
Air Contaminants
 OSHA
– PEL
• permissible exposure limit
 NIOSH
– REL
• recommended exposure level
 ACGIH
– TLV
• threshold limit value
 Exposure Limits
Air Contaminants
 OSHA
– PEL, STEL, Ceiling

 NIOSH
– TWA, STEL, Ceiling

 ACGIH
– TWA, STEL, Ceiling
 Exposure Limits
Air Contaminants
 TWA
– takes into account variable exposure through a full shift,
8 hour work day
 STEL
– limit of exposure during a short period, 15 minutes
 CEILING
– absolute maximum level of exposure not to be exceeded
 Exposure Limits
Air Contaminants
 Legally enforceable

– OSHA PEL

– OSHA AL (action level)

 Air Contaminants
 29 CFR 1910.1000
– Table Z-1
• Substances with Limits Preceded by “C” - Ceiling Values
– Table Z-2
• employee’s exposure to Table Z-1 contaminants shall not
exceed exposure limits listed in Z-2 (TWA and ceiling
concentrations)
– Table Z-3
• Mineral Dusts
 Hearing Conservation
 2.9 million workers experience 8-hours
noise exposures > 90 bBA
 29 CFR 1910.95
– PEL
• 90 dBA
• 8 hours
• engineering and administrative controls
Hearing Conservation Program
 Mandatory
– at an 8-hour TWA > 85 dBA
 Exposure monitoring
 Audiometric testing
 Hearing protection
 Employee training
 Recordkeeping
Hearing Conservation Program
 An effective program depends upon

– employers

– supervisors

– employees

– others
 Bloodborne Pathogens
 Bloodborne pathogens include
– Hepatitis B
– HIV
– Others

 29 CFR 1910.1030
– describes actions employers must take to reduce risk
of exposure in the workplace
 Bloodborne Pathogens
 29 CFR 1910.1030

– Scope and application

• all employees with occupational exposure to blood
and other potentially infectious materials (OPIM)

– Exposure control plan (ECP)

 Bloodborne Pathogens
 29 CFR 1910.1030 - ECP
– engineering and work practice controls
– personal protective equipment
– training
– medical surveillance
– Hepatitis B vaccinations
– signs and labels
– other provisions
Industrial Hygiene

 ANTICIPATION
 RECOGNITION
 EVALUTION
 CONTROL