Occupational Medicine & Health Affairs
Open Access

Abstract

The objectives of this research were to fabricate a CNT sorbent that allows safe use of this highly versatile material and to assess the performance and sampling capabilities of CNT felts and compare them to an industry standard (3M OVM 3500). An average concentration of 9.3 ppm toluene was maintained in a stainless steel chamber. Toluene was chosen based on its vast presence in the workplace and is a suitable surrogate for more toxic substances. Felts were fabricated using a fluid filtration technique and sized to fit the 3M diffusive bodies. Felts were exposed in the chamber for 30 minutes, one, two, and four hours along side standard 3M OVMs. These time trials were chosen based on CNT felt adsorption capacity. All experiments were conducted in triplicate and desorbed following NIOSH Method 4000.Using a t-test, there was no statistical difference in adsorbed mass between materials at 30 minute, one hour, and four hour trials (p-values: 0.058, 0.222, 0.066, respectively). However, the two hour trial was statistically different with felts collecting a larger mass (p=0.020). Differences between groups were not detectable at one hour and four hour trials due to high standard deviations in CNT felts.In all cases, mass adsorbed by CNT felts was greater than or equal to 3M. Adsorption rate of both materials is similar. By fabricating CNT felts of higher mass we can obtain similar sampling capacity to conventional diffusive samplers. CNT felts have great potential for use in conjunction with photothermal desorption, an emerging desorption technique.

Biography

Samantha Connell completed her Master of Science in Public Health in Industrial Hygiene at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in the United States. She is currently working on Project BONAS, completing research at the University of Lausanne and the Institute for Work and Health in Lausanne, Switzerland. She also has industrial hygiene experience in the fields of research and development, oil and gas, and entertainment.