Development of PM0.1 Personal Sampler for Evaluation of Personal Exposure to Aerosol Nanoparticles (original) (raw)
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Development and Performance Evaluation of Air Sampler with Inertial Filter for Nanoparticle Sampling
Aerosol and Air Quality Research, 2010
This paper describes the design and evaluation of an ambient air sampler consisting of a four-stage impactor and an inertial filter, for collecting various size fractions, including nano-particles, in a short sampling period. Impactor stages of PM 10 /PM 2.5 /PM 1 /PM 0.5 were successfully devised with a reasonable accuracy in terms of cutoff size and slope of the collection efficiency curves. The designed inertial filter had an aerodynamic cutoff size of d p50 ~65 nm with a satisfactory sharpness in classification. The total pressure drop of the sampler (hereinafter referred to as a "Nanosampler") was ~30 kPa at a flow rate of 40 L/min. The developed Nanosampler has advantages over currently available samplers such as LPI and nano-MOUDI, in terms of portability and loss of semi-volatile components in ultrafine particles by evaporation at a reduced pressure. Furthermore, the size distributions of the ambient particles measured with the Nanosampler compared favorably with those measured by the conventional instruments that are currently available on the market.
Design and Experimental Characterization of a PM1 and a PM2.5 Personal Sampler
Journal of Aerosol Science, 1999
This paper presents the development, laboratory and field evaluation of two personal particle samplers (PPS). Both samplers operate at a flow rate of 4 l min\, and collect particles smaller than 1.0 and 2.5 m in aerodynamic diameter, respectively, on 3.7 cm Teflon filters. In each sampler, particles larger than 2.5 or 1.0 m are retained by impaction onto a coated porous metal disk, which minimizes particle bounce. Using the substrates without any coating results in a substantial reduction of the collection efficiency for particles larger than the 50% cutpoint of the sampler. Particle losses in each sampler are quite low (e.g., on the order of 10% or less) and do not depend significantly on aerodynamic particle diameter. Both samplers display sharp particle cut characteristics, with the ratio of the aerodynamic particle diameter corresponding to 84% collection efficiency to the 50% cutpoint being approximately 1.18 and 1.27 for the PM and the PM samplers, respectively. Field tests showed that the mass, sulfate and nitrate concentrations measured by the PM PPS and a collocated PM Personal Exposure Monitor (PEM) agreed within 10% or less. Such agreement, however, was not observed between the PM PPS and the Harvard/EPA Annular Denuder System (HEADS), with the HEADS nitrate concentrations being on the average higher by a factor of 2.1. The particle mass, sulfate and nitrate concentrations obtained with a modified MOUDI sampler collecting all particles smaller than 1 m in aerodynamic diameter on a filter and the PM PPS were also in very good agreement (e.g., within 7% or less). The two personal particle samplers will be used in field studies in different locations of the U.S. to provide better estimates of human exposures to exclusively particles of the accumulation mode. (e.g., without incorporating the contribution of the coarse mode).
Development and evaluation of personal respirable particulate sampler (PRPS
Atmospheric Environment, 2006
This paper presents the development, laboratory evaluation, and field tests of a personal respirable particulate sampler (PRPS). The PRPS is designed as a personal sampling system to collect particulate matter (PM 0.5 , PM 1.0 , PM 2.5 , PM 4.5 , and PM 10 ) and gaseous pollutants, including O 3 , SO 2 , and NO 2 . It operates at a flow rate of 5.0 LPM and consists of five selectable impaction stages (with cutpoints of 10, 4.5, 2.5, 1.0, and 0.5 mm), a backup filter, and two diffusion passive samplers. In each impaction stage, particles are collected onto a polyurethane foam (PUF) substrate. This substrate, using no adhesive, was shown to have minimum particle bounce and re-entrainment. A backup 37 mm Teflon membrane filter is used downstream to collect particles smaller than the cutoff diameter of the final impaction stage. The impaction stage cutpoints were characterized in the laboratory using artificially generated polydisperse aerosols. Particle losses for each stage were found to be acceptably low. The performance of the PRPS was also compared with that of a collocated microorifice cascade impactor (MOI) and real-time particle sizing instruments (SMPS/APS) in laboratory experiments using artificially generated particles. The size distributions measured by the PRPS were found to be much closer to those measured by the real-time particle sizing instruments than to those measured by the MOI. A field PM intercomparison study was also conducted using the PRPS and three reference samplers, the Harvard Impactor (HI), the USEPA PM 2.5 Well Impactor Ninety Six (WINS), and the Harvard Personal Environmental Monitor (Harvard PEM) sampler. The PM 10 , PM 2.5 , and sulfate concentrations measured by PRPS were in a very good agreement with those obtained from the reference samplers. r
Development of a Personal Sampler for Evaluating Exposure to Ultrafine Particles
Aerosol and Air Quality Research, 2010
Evaluation of the exposure of humans to ultrafine, airborne particles is an important aspect of health in the workplace, especially in cases where nano-particles are present. However, portable sampling devices for efficiently collecting ultrafine particles in a worker's breathing zone are not readily available. The present study describes the design and development of a portable sampler for collecting particulates in the breathing zone, as a possible tool for this purpose. The design is based on the use of an "Inertial Filter" to separate various-sized nano-order particles. Inertial filters consisting of SUS fiber felt (fiber diameter 5.6-13.5 μm) placed in circular nozzles (3-6 mm diameter with 4.5 mm length) were used. To achieve the smallest dp50 under the allowable pressure drop of a portable pump, the influence of fiber loading on separation performance and pressure drop were investigated. The influence of particle loading was also examined in relation to pressure drop and separation performance. The smallest dp50 under the allowable pressure drop (5.7 kPa at 6 L/min) for the battery pump employed was ~140 and 200 nm respectively for SUS fibers of 5.6 and 9.8 μm diameter (particle volume fraction ~0.013). The change in separation performance due to particle loading was confirmed to be acceptable for use under the present conditions. Under these conditions, a sufficient amount of particles can be collected for chemical analyses, e.g., particle-bound PAHs after 6-8 hours of sampling. Hence, the developed sampler has the potential for use in evaluating exposure to ultrafine particles in the breathing zone in the workplace.
Environmental Science & Technology, 2012
A novel active personal nanoparticle sampler (PENS), which enables the collection of both respirable particulate mass (RPM) and nanoparticles (NPs) simultaneously, was developed to meet the critical demand for personal sampling of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) in workplaces. The PENS consists of a respirable cyclone and a micro-orifice impactor with the cutoff aerodynamic diameter (d pa50 ) of 4 μm and 100 nm, respectively. The micro-orifice impactor has a fixed micro-orifice plate (137 nozzles of 55 μm in the inner diameter) and a rotating, silicone oil-coated Teflon filter substrate at 1 rpm to achieve a uniform particle deposition and avoid solid particle bounce. A final filter is used after the impactor to collect the NPs. Calibration results show that the d pa50 of the respirable cyclone and the micro-orifice impactor are 3.92 ± 0.22 μm and 101.4 ± 0.1 nm, respectively. The d pa50 at the loaded micro-Al 2 O 3 mass of 0.36−3.18 mg is shifted to 102.9−101.2 nm, respectively, while it is shifted to 98.9−97.8 nm at the loaded nano-TiO 2 mass of 0.92−1.78 mg, respectively. That is, the shift of d pa50 due to solid particle loading is small if the PENS is not overloaded. Both NPs and RPM concentrations were found to agree well with those of the IOSH respirable cyclone and MOUDI. By using the present PENS, the collected samples can be further analyzed for chemical species concentrations besides gravimetric analysis to determine the actual exposure concentrations of ENMs in both RPM and NPs fractions in workplaces, which are often influenced by the background or incident pollution sources.
Science of The Total Environment, 2019
In this study, we developed a novel method for generating aerosols that are representative of realworld ambient particulate matter (PM) in terms of both physical and chemical characteristics, with the ultimate objective of using them for inhalation exposure studies. The protocol included collection of ambient PM on filters using a high-volume sampler, which were then extracted with ultrapure Milli-Q water using vortexing and sonication. As an alternative approach for collection, ambient particles were directly captured into aqueous slurry samples using the versatile aerosol concentration enrichment system (VACES)/aerosol-into-liquid collector tandem technology. The aqueous samples from both collection protocols were then re-aerosolized using commercially available nebulizers. The physical characteristics (i.e., particle size distribution) of the generated aerosols were examined by the means of a scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS) connected to a condensation particle counter (CPC) at different compressed air pressures of the nebulizer, and dilution air flow rates. In addition, the collected PM samples (both ambient and re-aerosolized) were chemically analyzed for water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC), elemental and organic carbon (EC/OC), inorganic ions, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and metals and trace elements. Using the aqueous filter extracts, we were able to effectively recover the water-soluble components of ambient PM (e.g., water-soluble organic matter, and water-soluble inorganic ions); however, this method was deficient in recovering some of the important insoluble components such as EC, PAHs, and many of the redox-active trace elements and metals. In contrast, using the VACES/aerosol-into-liquid collector tandem technology for collecting ambient PM directly into water slurry, we were able to preserve the water-soluble and water-insoluble components very effectively. These results illustrate the superiority of the VACES/aerosol-into liquid collector tandem technology to be used in conjunction with the re-aerosolization setup to create aerosols that fully represent ambient PM, making it an attractive choice for application in inhalation exposure studies.
Journal of Nanoparticle Research, 2014
The filtration of airborne nanoparticles is an important control technique as the environmental, health, and safety impacts of nanomaterials grow. A review of the literature shows that significant progress has been made on airborne nanoparticle filtration in the academic field in the recent years. We summarize the filtration mechanisms of fibrous and membrane filters; the air flow resistance and filter media figure of merit are discussed. Our review focuses on the air filtration test methods and instrumentation necessary to implement them; recent experimental studies are summarized accordingly. Two methods using monodisperse and polydisperse challenging aerosols, respectively, are discussed in detail. Our survey shows that the commercial instruments are already available for generating a large amount of nanoparticles, sizing, and quantifying them accurately. The commercial self-contained filter test systems provide the possibility of measurement for particles down to 15 nm. Current international standards dealing with efficiency test for filters and filter media focus on measurement of the minimum efficiency at the most penetrating particle size. The available knowledge and instruments provide a solid base for development of test methods to determine the effectiveness of filtration media against airborne nanoparticles down to singledigit nanometer range.
A Novel Size-Selective Airborne Particle Sampling Instrument (Wras) for Health Risk Evaluation
NATO Science for Peace and Security Series C: Environmental Security
Health risks associated with the inhalation of airborne particles are known to be influenced by particle size. Studies have shown that certain nanoparticles, with diameters <100 nm, have increased toxicity relative to larger particles of the same substance. A reliable, size-resolving sampler able to collect a wide range of particle sizes, including particles with sizes in the nanometre range, would be beneficial in investigating health risks associated with the inhalation of airborne particles. A review of current aerosol samplers used for size-resolved collection of airborne particles highlighted a number of limitations. These could be overcome by combining an inertial deposition impactor with a diffusion collector in a single device. Verified theories of diffusion and inertial deposition suggested an optimal design and operational regime. The instrument was designed for analysing mass distribution functions. Calibration was carried out using a number of recognized techniques. The sampler was tested in the field by collecting sizeresolved samples of lead containing aerosols present at workplaces in factories producing crystal glass. The mass deposited on each screen proved sufficient to be detected and measured by an appropriate analytical technique. Mass concentration distribution functions of lead were produced. The nanofraction of lead in air varied from 10 to 70% by weight of total lead.
Evaluation of filter media for particle number, surface area and mass penetrations
The Annals of occupational hygiene, 2012
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) developed a standard for respirator certification under 42 CFR Part 84, using a TSI 8130 automated filter tester with photometers. A recent study showed that photometric detection methods may not be sensitive for measuring engineered nanoparticles. Present NIOSH standards for penetration measurement are mass-based; however, the threshold limit value/permissible exposure limit for an engineered nanoparticle worker exposure is not yet clear. There is lack of standardized filter test development for engineered nanoparticles, and development of a simple nanoparticle filter test is indicated. To better understand the filter performance against engineered nanoparticles and correlations among different tests, initial penetration levels of one fiberglass and two electret filter media were measured using a series of polydisperse and monodisperse aerosol test methods at two different laboratories (University of Minnesota Partic...
Industrial Health, 2010
There is an increasing concern about the health hazard posed to workers exposed to inhalation of nanoparticles. Inhaling nanoparticles posses an occupational hazard due to elevated amount emitted to the atmosphere and working environment. Nanoparticles have potential toxic properties: the high particle surface area, number concentration, and surface reactivity. Inhalation, the most common route of nanoparticle exposure, has been shown to cause adverse effects on pulmonary functions and the deposited particles in the lung can be translocated to the blood system by passing through the pulmonary protection barriers. Filtration is the simplest and most common method of aerosol control. It is widely used in mechanical ventilation and respiratory protection. However, concerns have been raised regarding the effectiveness of the filters for capturing nanoparticles. This paper reviews the literature on the filtration performance of mechanical filters and respirators against nanoparticles. It includes the discussion about filtration mechanisms, theoretical models, affecting factors of the filtration efficiency, and testing protocols for respirator and filter certification.