Industrial Health · 2010 · 30 citations · 13 references
Public HealthEnvironmental SciencesToxicologyAir PollutionAnalytical ChemistryEnvironmental HealthAir PollutantsAir Pollution MeasurementAir QualityAir SamplingExposure AssessmentExposure MonitoringAcute Occupational ExposureAir Quality AnalysisAirborne Contaminant AssessmentEnvironmental Quality MonitoringGas Chromatography-mass SpectrometryOccupant Exposure AssessmentThreshold Limit DeterminationWorkplace Air Monitoring
A new automated method based upon solid phase micro-extraction (SPME)/fast gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was developed for the quantitative determination of airborne peracetic acid (PAA). The method is suitable for the quick assessment of brief acute exposure as well as for long-term environmental monitoring of PAA and can assist in improving safety and environmental quality in workplaces where disinfectants are used. During a monitoring campaign in the Regional Hospital of Florence, Italy, the 8-h average air concentration of PAA was 1/10 of the threshold limit value of time weighted average in 87% of the clinical units tested. However, the application of the new SPME method showed that short-term exposure to PAA could be relatively elevated in some hospital units with poor ventilation, allowing prompt intervention in order to reduce worker exposure to this potentially toxic compound.
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