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GAS-PHASE AND PARTICULATE EMISSIONS DURING APPLICATION OF A WATER-BASED CLEANER WITH A HAND-PUMP SPRAYER
Citation:
Fortmann, R., A. Ng, N. Roache, AND E Howard*. GAS-PHASE AND PARTICULATE EMISSIONS DURING APPLICATION OF A WATER-BASED CLEANER WITH A HAND-PUMP SPRAYER. Presented at Indoor Air '99, Edinburgh, Scotland, 8/8-13/99.
Description:
The paper gives results of tests in a controlled environment test room to measure concentrations of 2-butoxyethanol and particles during application of a cleaner to realistic surfaces (counter tops, glass, walls). (NOTE: Users of water-based cleaners applied with hand-pump sprayers may be exposed to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that evaporate from surfaces being cleaned and by inhalation of liquid droplets in the air following application). 2-Butoxyethanol was collected on Tenax and analyzed by gas chromatography. Concentrations of droplets were measured continuously with an aerodynamic particle sizer. During two tests with the cleaner diluted 1 part with 9 parts water, the average concentrations of 2-butoxyethanol during the 20-minute cleaning period were 13.5 and 10.3 mg/ cu m, about half the NIOSH recommended exposure limit of 24 mg/ cu m. After 2 hours, the concentrations dropped below 4 mg/ cu m in the room exhausted at a rate of 1 air change per hour. In a closed room, without exhaust ventilation, the average concentrations in a 20-minute cleaning event during use of a cleaner diluted 1 to 100 were 1.5 and 1.2 mg/ cu m and remained elevated throughout the 2-hour test period. Test results suggest that users of cleaners may be exposed to elevated levels of gas-phase VOCs, but exposure to VOCs due to droplet inhalation may not be significant.