Risk assessment of occupational exposure to BTEX in the National Oil Distribution Company in Iran (original) (raw)
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Exposing to the high-level of BTXs concentration can occur in the oil-dependent industries and may cause considerable adverse impacts on the health of employees. The main objective of the present study firstly is determining the exposure of petrochemical and oil depot workers to benzene, toluene, ortho and methyl xylenes, and p-xylene (BTXs), and secondly is estimating the lifetime cancer risk (LCR) and non-carcinogenic risk using the hazard quotient (HQ). This cross-sectional study is conducted on 85 workers at petrochemical (34 subjects) and oil depot (51 subjects) industries of Iran in 2016. In order to determine the exposure concentrations of BTXs, through inhaling way, individual sampling was carried out according to the NIOSH 1501 method. Then, estimating LCR of benzene, and non-carcinogenic risk of benzene, toluene, ortho and methyl xylenes, and p-xylene, using the HQ, has been conducted regards to criteria recommended by USEPA. The mean exposure concentration of benzene among the oil depot workers was higher than the petrochemical workers, but this difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.162). The mean exposure concentration of benzene in the oil depot workers (2.1 ± 2.53mg/m 3) was higher than the occupational exposure limits provided by the American conference of governmental industrial hygienists (ACGIH_TLV = 1.67mg/m 3). The mean concentration of toluene in the exposed workers of the oil depot (46.81 ± 22.43mg/m 3) was higher than the exposed workers of petrochemical (41.83 ± 30.06mg/m 3), but this difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.412). The results of carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risk assessment revealed high-risk exposure level in the both investigated groups. The mean LCR of benzene in the oil depot workers was higher than the petrochemical workers (1.681E-3 and 1.163E-3, for the oil depot and petrochemical, respectively). The LCR of benzene and HQ of BTXs in the both investigated groups were higher than the reference values. In order to reduce occupational exposure to BTXs in the investigated oil depot and petrochemical, control measures should be taken in the future, as soon as possible.
Iranian journal of health, safety and environment, 2018
Exposing to the high-level of BTXs concentration can occur in the oil-dependent industries and may cause considerable adverse impacts on the health of employees. The main objective of the present study firstly is determining the exposure of petrochemical and oil depot workers to benzene, toluene, ortho and methyl xylenes, and p-xylene (BTXs), and secondly is estimating the lifetime cancer risk (LCR) and non-carcinogenic risk using the hazard quotient (HQ). This cross-sectional study is conducted on 85 workers at petrochemical (34 subjects) and oil depot (51 subjects) industries of Iran in 2016. In order to determine the exposure concentrations of BTXs, through inhaling way, individual sampling was carried out according to the NIOSH 1501 method. Then, estimating LCR of benzene, and non-carcinogenic risk of benzene, toluene, ortho and methyl xylenes, and p-xylene, using the HQ, has been conducted regards to criteria recommended by USEPA. The mean exposure concentration of benzene amon...
Occupational exposure of petroleum depot workers to BTEX compounds
The international journal of occupational and environmental medicine, 2012
Benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene (BTEX) are the most important toxic volatile compounds in the air and could be easily absorbed through the respiratory tract. In recent years, the risk of exposure to BTEX compounds, especially benzene as a carcinogen, has been considered in petroleum depot stations. To assess the occupational exposure of petroleum depot workers in Iran to BTEX compounds. After completing a questionnaire and assessing occupational exposure to BTEX compounds, 78 (46 exposed and 32 non-exposed) depot workers were randomly selected to participate in this study. Air sampling and analysis of BTEX was conducted according to the NIOSH method No. 1501. Analysis of urinary hippuric acid, as an indicator of toluene exposure, was carried out according to NIOSH method No. 8300. Personal monitoring of the high exposure group to BTEX compounds was repeated to verify the results obtained in the first phase of the monitoring. Among the 9 operating groups studied, occupation...
BTEX exposure assessment and quantitative risk assessment among petroleum product distributors
Ecotoxicology and environmental safety, 2017
The aim of this study was to evaluate benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX) exposure among workers at four stations of a major oil distribution company. Personal BTEX exposure samples were collected over working shift (8h) for 50 workers at four stations of a major oil distribution company in Iran. Measured mean values for workers across four sites were benzene (2437, 992, 584, and 2788μg/m(3) respectively), toluene (4415, 2830, 1289, and 9407μg/m(3)), ethylbenzene (781, 522, 187, and 533μg/m(3)), and xylene (1134, 678, 322, and 525μg/m(3)). The maximum mean concentration measured across sites for benzene was 2788μg/m(3) (Station 4), toluene was 9407μg/m(3) (Station 4), ethylbenzene was 781μg/m(3) (Station 1) and xylene was 1134μg/m(3) (Station 1). The 8h averaged personal exposure benzene concentration exceeded the recommended value of 1600μg/m(3) established by the Iranian Committee for Review and Collection of Occupational Exposure Limit and American Conference of Gov...
Archives of Industrial Hygiene and Toxicology
The aim of introducing occupational exposure limits (OELs) is to use them as a risk management tool in order to protect workers’ health and well-being against harmful agents at the workplace. In this review we identify OELs for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene (BTEX), and styrene concentrations in air and assess occupational exposure to these compounds through a systematic literature search of publications published in West Asian countries from 1980 to 2021. OELs for BTEX and styrene have been set in Iran and Turkey to levels similar to those in European countries and the US. The search yielded 49 full-text articles that cover studies of exposure assessment in six countries, but most (n=40) regard Iran. Average occupational exposure to benzene of workers in oil-related industries is higher than recommended OEL, while average occupational exposure to other compounds is lower than local OELs (where they exist). Currently, information about levels of occupational exposure to BTEX...
Journal of Environmental Protection
Gas stations are important emissions source of benzene (C 6 H 6), toluene (C 7 H 8), ethylbenzene (C 8 H 10), and ortho, meta and para-xylene (C 8 H 10)better known by the acronym BTEX. The objective of this study was to determine the concentrations of BTEX compounds in the ambient air of ten gas stations in the cities of Salvador and Feira de Santana, Bahia, Brazil and evaluate the health risks to workers. Passive samplers diffusive of the Radiello®, containing activated carbon as adsorbent, were used. The samplers were exposed for 8 h and then the analytes were recovered by chemical desorption with CS 2 and determined by GC-FID. The BTEX concentrations found in the ambient air of gas stations ranged from 46.72-435.43 μg·m −3 for benzene; 25.54-342.46 μg·m −3 for toluene, 7.10-30.07 μg·m −3 for ethylbenzene, 9.36-89.73 μg·m −3 for m, p-xylene and 9.79-52.29 μg·m −3 for o-xylene. The concentrations of toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes found in gas stations were lower than the limits recommended by the US NIOSH and NR-15 of the Ministry of Labour of Brazil; however, it should be considered the risks due to chronic exposure of workers. Benzene concentrations in three gas stations were above the exposure limit recommended by NIOSH (3.20 × 10 2 μg·m −3). Samplings were also held outdoors at 250 m of two gas stations. The total concentrations of the BTEX compounds were equal to 24.97 and 35.51 μg·m −3 , and benzene concentrations were about 3-4 times higher than the annual pattern of 5.0 μg·m −3 established by Union European, as tolerance limit for outside areas. These data confirm that the next areas of gas stations are subject to the effects of volatilization of these compounds. Additionally, the values found in the 10 gas stations for the cancer risk ranged from 4.06 × 10 −5-3.78 × 10 −4 (mean of 1.82 × 10 −4) for workers exposed to benzene for 30 years (acceptable limit equal 1.00 × 10 −6
International journal of environmental research and public health, 2018
In the current study, the concentration of some pollutants which are categorized as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including benzene (B), toluene (T), ethylbenzene (E), and o-xylenes (o-X), in the air of Tehran was evaluated by the aid of a systematic review and meta-analysis approach. Also, the health risk for the exposed population was estimated using the recommended methods by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The rank order based on their concentration in BTEX was benzene (149.18 µg/m³: 31%) > o-xylene (127.16 µg/m³: 27%) > ethylbenzene (110.15 µg/m³: 23%) > toluene (87.97 µg/m³: 19%). The ratio B/T in this study was calculated as 1.69, repressing that both stationary and mobile sources of emission can be considered as the main sources for benzene and toluene. Moreover, strong photochemical activity in Tehran was demonstrated by the high ratio of E/o-X. Meta-regression indicates that the concentration of BTEX has insignificantly (-value > 0.05) increased...
Indian journal of occupational and environmental medicine
Long-term exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) affects the occupancies health in petrochemical complex. The aim of this study is to apply the lifetime cancer risk (LCR) and hazard quotient (HQ) in occupational exposure to estimate the risk of VOCs in petrochemical complexes. A cross-sectional study was conducted in the petrochemical complex of Iran for a period of 1 year. Sorbent tubes were used to obtain air samples from 169 workers at different petrochemical complexes in southern Iran. The compounds analyzed with gas chromatography equipped with a flame ionization detector (FID). The data were analyzed by SPSS version 16. Comparison between the mean of pollutants concentration in personal samples was performed by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) test. For all groups of workers, the results showed that exposure to carcinogenic compounds leads to LCR risks higher than 1 × 10. The mean of LCR for benzene is more than 10, and 53.3% of workers' exposed has a definite r...
Cancer Risk Analysis of Benzene and Ethyl Benzene in Painters
Basic & Clinical Cancer Research, 2017
Background: Several effects of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been recognized such as toxic and carcinogenic human health effects. To evaluate cancer risk of benzenes air samples were taken, at an automobile manufacturing painters in Tehran following inhalation exposure. Methods: To perform this study, cross-sectional was done in 2016. Sampling was carried out by active pump sampler using the NIOSH method 1501. A total of 40 samples of BTEX were analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Flame Ionization Detector (GC-FID). In final, estimated terms of Chronic Daily Intake (CDI) was for cancer risk and Exposure Concentration (EC) for non-cancer. Results: The 4-weeks average benzene, toluene, ethyl-benzene, and xylene exposure levels in exposed subjects were 0.775±0.12, 1.2±2.08, 45.8±8.5 and 42.5±23.9 ppm, respectively. The result of the study indicated that, among all of the BTEX compounds, toluene had the lower concentration. The mean cancer risk for exposed workers to benzene and eth...
Health symptoms associated with occupational exposure of gasoline station workers to BTEX compounds
Atmospheric Environment, 2020
Workers in gasoline stations may experience health symptoms due to inhalation to benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylene (BTEX) species in their work environment. Air samplers installed in gasoline stations indicate exposure concentration during the workday as high as 225-723 μg benzene/m 3 , in excess of the NIOSH exposure limits of 135 μg benzene/m 3 (adjusted for the actual exposure time of workers in this study). According to a deterministic health assessment, there was an elevated cancer risk for workers due to exposure to benzene (4.2 × 10 −4 to 1.4 × 10 −3 ) and ethyl benzene (1.1 × 10 −4 and 3.5 × 10 −4 ), which were greater than the acceptable limit of 1 × 10 −6 . Stochastic exposure assessment with a Monte Carlo simulation revealed serious carcinogenic risks to all workers in the gasoline station, regardless of whether they were operating the gasoline pumps or doing other tasks, such as collecting money. In response to a health questionnaire, the dominant symptoms reported by gasoline station workers were headache (50%), depression (40%), fatigue (25%), and throat irritation (20%). We recommend better ventilation systems to remove BTEX species from the environment, either by installing fans or building gasoline stations in locations with good natural air exchange.