Grantee Research Project Results
2001 Progress Report: Toxicology Project -- Controlled Exposure Facility
EPA Grant Number: R827355C006Subproject: this is subproject number 006 , established and managed by the Center Director under grant R827355
(EPA does not fund or establish subprojects; EPA awards and manages the overall grant for this center).
Center: Water Environment and Reuse Foundation's National Center for Resource Recovery and Nutrient Management
Center Director: Olabode, Lola
Title: Toxicology Project -- Controlled Exposure Facility
Investigators: Kaufman, Joel D.
Current Investigators: Kaufman, Joel D. , Stewart, James A , Gemar, Kjersti A , Curtiss, Heidi M , Larson, Timothy V. , Trenga, Carol , Sands, FN , Sullivan, Jeff , Shepherd, Kristine , Jarvis, SS , Gould, Timothy
Institution: University of Washington , Washington State University
Current Institution: University of Washington
EPA Project Officer: Chung, Serena
Project Period: June 1, 1999 through May 31, 2004 (Extended to May 31, 2006)
Project Period Covered by this Report: June 1, 2000 through May 31, 2001
RFA: Airborne Particulate Matter (PM) Centers (1999) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Air Quality and Air Toxics , Particulate Matter , Air
Objective:
The objective of this research project is to construct a controlled exposure facility at the University of Washington that will have the capability to expose human subjects to complex air pollution mixtures such as diesel exhaust.
Progress Summary:
Dr. Joel Kaufman is designing and constructing a controlled exposure facility. Progress to date has involved purchasing the necessary equipment, obtaining institutional review board approval, pilot testing the exposure atmospheres, and characterizing the exposures. Dr. Kaufman is developing testable hypotheses regarding diesel exhaust particulate exposure and cardiovascular disease, as well as exposure to these particles and changes in systemic markers of oxidative stress.
Northlake Laboratory Facility for Combustion-Derived Particulate Exposures. The evolving experimental and epidemiological evidence that ambient levels of fine particulate matter (PM) are associated with significant cardiovascular and respiratory health effects raises many questions. PM from combustion sources likely is of special concern, and diesel exhaust has been especially implicated.
This pilot project will convert the existing Northlake ventilation laboratory into a facility for Controlled Exposure to Combustion-Derived Particulate Matter. This new laboratory will be an important resource for investigations into the health effects of exposures to combustion products at low-level occupational or near-ambient levels. The initial exposure system being developed will generate an environment mimicking ambient PM from heavy-duty diesel engines such as those found in trucks, school buses, tractors, electric generators, and construction equipment.
Initial planned investigations will include a full characterization of the exposures in the chamber, pilot studies on respiratory effects in asthmatic subjects, studies on cardiovascular effects in healthy subjects, and studies on the symptoms associated with these exposures. A separate room of the facility is available for animal exposures in toxicology experiments. The opportunity to carefully study biomarkers of exposure and effect is an advantage of this chamber.
Exposures occur within an existing, well-characterized 100 cubic meter exposure chamber. Previous measurement and tracer studies indicate that the chamber can approximate ideal plug flow under suitable inlet temperature conditions. All subject exposures and exposure characterization occur in a 13.8 cubic meter central breathing and sampling zone. The air entering the room is conditioned to 18°C and 60 percent relative humidity.
Diesel exhaust PM will be derived from a current model turbocharged direct-injection 5.9 liter Cummins B-series engine (6BT5.9G6, Cummins, Inc., Columbus, IN) in a 100 kW generator set located just outside the laboratory. This engine is comparable to that used in heavy-duty road applications such as delivery trucks and school buses. Fuel is #2 un-dyed on-highway fuel from a commercial source that will remain stable throughout the experiments. Load is maintained at 75 percent of rated capacity, using a load-adjusting load bank (Simplex, Springfield, IL) throughout the experiments. Emissions from this contemporary engine operating at load provide substantial information of interest in studying the health effects of diesel exhaust particulate derived from contemporary engines in heavy-duty trucks and non-road diesel applications.
Emissions Dilution. Recent studies summarized by Kittelson and colleagues have shown that the number and size distribution of particles with diameters less than 50 nm are highly dependent on the rate and temperature of dilution. Our dilution system design is directly analogous to that used in the University of Minnesota laboratories. This design has a fast primary dilution of 15:1 and a subsequent tunnel residence time of 2 seconds. The secondary dilution, assisted by turbulence in a 1,000 cfm tunnel, results in final breathing zone concentrations between 15 and 200 µg/m3 PM2.5 diesel exhaust particles, which we calibrate to experimental concentrations using a flow splitter after the primary dilution. All dilution air for the system is passed through HEPA filters, permitting a filtered air control exposure option with very low particulate levels.
The facility will represent an important resource, and its development and support represents an important initiative for the Center.
Future Activities:
Future activities include exposure of human subjects to well-characterized diesel exhaust. Initial studies will start with healthy subjects. The ultimate goal is to study compromised subjects such as adults with asthma. Both respiratory and cardiac endpoints will be measured.
Journal Articles:
No journal articles submitted with this report: View all 4 publications for this subprojectSupplemental Keywords:
particulate matter, PM, ambient particles, fine particles, combustion, health, exposure, biostatistics, susceptibility, diesel, diesel exhaust., RFA, Health, Scientific Discipline, PHYSICAL ASPECTS, Air, ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, particulate matter, Toxicology, air toxics, Health Risk Assessment, Air Pollutants, Environmental Chemistry, Epidemiology, Air Pollution Effects, Risk Assessments, Biochemistry, Physical Processes, Atmospheric Sciences, Risk Assessment, health effects, ambient aerosol, particulates, ambient air quality, cardiopulmonary responses, human health effects, exposure and effects, animal model, exposure, air pollution, particle exposure, diesel exhaust, atmospheric aerosols, ambient particle health effects, inhalation, human exposure, PM, particle transport, cardiovascular disease, human health risk, aerosols, atmospheric chemistryProgress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractMain Center Abstract and Reports:
R827355 Water Environment and Reuse Foundation's National Center for Resource Recovery and Nutrient Management Subprojects under this Center: (EPA does not fund or establish subprojects; EPA awards and manages the overall grant for this center).
R827355C001 Epidemiologic Study of Particulate Matter and Cardiopulmonary
Mortality
R827355C002 Health Effects
R827355C003 Personal PM Exposure Assessment
R827355C004 Characterization of Fine Particulate Matter
R827355C005 Mechanisms of Toxicity of Particulate Matter Using Transgenic Mouse Strains
R827355C006 Toxicology Project -- Controlled Exposure Facility
R827355C007 Health Effects Research Core
R827355C008 Exposure Core
R827355C009 Statistics and Data Core
R827355C010 Biomarker Core
R827355C011 Oxidation Stress Makers
The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.
Project Research Results
1 journal articles for this subproject
Main Center: R827355
209 publications for this center
109 journal articles for this center