Institut Robert-Sauvé en santé et en sécurité du travail, Canada; Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Université de Montréal, Canada.
Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Université de Montréal, Canada; Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal Research Centre (CRCHUM), Canada; Université de Montréal Public Health Research Institute (IRSPUM), Canada.
Environ Int. 2019 Jul;128:244-253. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2019.04.027. Epub 2019 May 3.
In response to a worldwide increase in production of electronic waste, the e-recycling industry is rapidly rowing. E-recycling workers are exposed to many potentially toxic contaminants, among which flame retardants (FRs), mainly suspected of being endocrine disruptors, are thought to be the most prevalent.
To conduct an exposure assessment of four chemical groups of FRs in Canadian e-recycling facilities, and to identify the main cofactors of exposure.
Personal air samples were collected over a workday for 85 workers in six e-recycling facilities, grouped into three facility sizes, and for 15 workers in control commercial waste facilities. Total particulate matter was measured by gravimetry with stationary air samples. FRs were collected on OSHA versatile samplers, which allow particulate and vapor phases collection. Fifteen polybrominated diphenyl ether congeners (PBDEs), nine novel brominated (NBFRs), two chlorinated (ClFRs), and fourteen organophosphate ester (OPEs) flame retardants were analysed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Sociodemographic data, tasks performed and materials processed by participating workers were recorded. Tobit regressions were used to identify cofactors of exposure, and their conclusions were corroborated using semi-parametric reverse Cox regressions.
Thirty-nine of the 40 FRs analysed were detected in at least one air sample in e-recycling, and workers in this industry were exposed on average to 26 (range 12 to 39) different substances. The most detected chemical group of FRs in e-recycling was PBDEs with geometric mean sums of all congeners ranging from 120 to 5100 ng/m, followed by OPEs with 740 to 1000 ng/m, NBFRs with 7.6 to 100 ng/m, and finally ClFRs with 3.9 to 32 mg/m. The most important cofactor of exposure was the size of the e-recycling facility, with the largest one presenting on average 12 times the concentrations found in the control facility. Among tasks as potential cofactors of exposure, manual dismantling and baler operation exposed workers to some of the highest concentrations of PBDEs and ClFRs. There was a reduction of up to 27% in exposure to FRs associated with a 3-year increase in seniority. Finally, particulate matter concentrations in e-recycling facilities were highly correlated with all chemical classes except OPEs, and were higher in the large facility.
Among the FRs analysed, PBDE exposure was particularly high in e-recycling. Dust and particulate matter reduction strategies in these workplaces, together with training on proper working practices would certainly be important first steps to lower occupational exposures and prevent potential health effects.
由于全球电子废物产量的增加，电子回收行业正在迅速发展。电子回收工人接触到许多潜在的有毒污染物，其中阻燃剂（FRs）主要被怀疑是内分泌干扰物，被认为是最普遍的。
对加拿大电子回收设施中的 4 类 FRs 进行暴露评估，并确定主要的暴露因素。
对 6 家电子回收设施的 85 名工人和 15 名控制商业废物设施的工人进行了 85 名工人的个人空气样本采集，采集时间为工作日。使用固定空气采样器通过重量法测量总颗粒物。FRs 采用 OSHA 多功能采样器收集，该采样器允许收集颗粒物和蒸气相。通过气相色谱-质谱法分析了 15 种多溴二苯醚同系物（PBDEs）、9 种新型溴化（NBFRs）、2 种氯化（ClFRs）和 14 种有机磷酸酯（OPEs）阻燃剂。记录参与工人的社会人口统计学数据、所执行的任务和处理的材料。使用 Tobit 回归来确定暴露因素，并使用半参数逆 Cox 回归来验证其结论。
在电子回收中，至少有一个空气样本中检测到了 40 种 FRs 中的 39 种，该行业的工人平均接触 26 种（范围为 12 种至 39 种）不同的物质。在电子回收中检测到的 FRs 最多的化学组是 PBDEs，所有同系物的几何平均总和范围为 120 至 5100ng/m，其次是 OPEs，为 740 至 1000ng/m，NBFRs 为 7.6 至 100ng/m，最后是 ClFRs，为 3.9 至 32mg/m。暴露的最重要的因素是电子回收设施的规模，最大的设施的浓度平均是对照设施的 12 倍。在作为潜在暴露因素的任务中，手动拆卸和打包操作使工人接触到一些最高浓度的 PBDEs 和 ClFRs。与 3 年的工龄增加相关，FRs 的暴露减少了 27%。最后，电子回收设施中的颗粒物浓度与除 OPEs 之外的所有化学物质高度相关，而且在大型设施中的浓度更高。
在所分析的 FRs 中，电子回收中 PBDE 的暴露尤其高。这些工作场所的粉尘和颗粒物减少策略，以及关于正确工作实践的培训，肯定是降低职业暴露和预防潜在健康影响的重要第一步。
