Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, School of Engineering Safety and Risk Management, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
Toxicol Ind Health. 2023 Jul;39(7):374-387. doi: 10.1177/07482337231176602. Epub 2023 May 31.
Occupational exposure to respirable crystalline silica (RCS) is common for several occupations in construction, not only because of its presence in many handling materials but also in processes such as grinding and sawing. This study investigated workplace exposure to RCS as quartz in industries and occupations within road construction in Alberta through the RCS monitoring database provided by the Alberta Roadbuilders and Heavy Construction Association (ARHCA) between 2007 and 2016. Descriptive statistics were calculated for exposure-related variables, and mixed model analysis was performed to determine factors affecting the exposure levels. Results showed that the highest exposed workers were in the sand and gravel industry (GM = 45 μg/m). For worker occupations, geometric means ranged from 78 μg/m for crusher operators to 10 μg/m for concrete truck operators. The maximum exposure severity was 33.3 times the occupational exposure limit (OEL) for the sand and gravel and 31 times the OEL for tower operators. The results also showed the effect of seasonal variability on RCS exposure levels. The heterogeneous exposure results indicated significant room for improvement and that controls should focus more on the activity performed than the occupation to lower exposure to RCS levels in industries.
职业性接触可呼吸性结晶二氧化硅（RCS）在建筑行业的几个职业中很常见，不仅因为它存在于许多处理材料中，而且还存在于研磨和锯切等过程中。本研究通过阿尔伯塔道路建设商和重型建筑协会（ARHCA）在 2007 年至 2016 年期间提供的 RCS 监测数据库，调查了阿尔伯塔省道路建设行业和职业中 RCS 作为石英的工作场所暴露情况。对与暴露相关的变量进行了描述性统计，并进行了混合模型分析，以确定影响暴露水平的因素。结果表明，暴露程度最高的工人在砂石行业（GM=45μg/m）。对于工人职业，几何平均值范围从破碎机操作员的 78μg/m 到混凝土卡车操作员的 10μg/m。最大暴露严重程度是砂石行业职业暴露限值（OEL）的 33.3 倍，塔式起重机操作员的 OEL 为 31 倍。结果还表明季节性变化对 RCS 暴露水平有影响。不均匀的暴露结果表明有很大的改进空间，控制措施应更加关注所进行的活动，而不是职业，以降低行业中 RCS 水平。
