Benefits and limitations of field-based monitoring approaches for respirable dust and crystalline silica applied in a sandstone quarry

Cauda, Emanuele; Dolan, Eric; Cecala, Andrew B.; Louk, Kyle; Yekich, Milan; Chubb, Lauren; Lingenfelter, Andrew

doi:10.1080/15459624.2022.2132257

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…There are challenges associated with end-of-shift monitoring as well as in-eld measurement of RCS 5,6 . A recent review 6 suggested that more research is required in the areas of RCS measurement, especially in the development of standardized in-eld calibration methods and incorporating them in near real-time portable RCS analysis instrumentation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Validation of a Novel Dust Generator using Respirable Crystalline Silica

Noi,

Davies,

Apthorpe

et al. 2024

Preprint

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The inability to measure occupational exposure to respirable crystalline silica (RCS) in real-time is a concern for occupational hygienists and other allied professionals. Workplace exposure samples are usually collected and transported from the work environment to an accredited laboratory for analysis which can take many weeks. Overcoming such difficulty will save analyses time and enable occupational hygienists and organizations to make timely interventions in work areas where there is exposure to high levels of RCS. A portable dust generator has been developed for in-field use to enable the quantification of RCS in various dust clouds. The Rota-Dust dust generator has been successfully developed and validated to produce dust clouds for up to two hours and subsequently prepare calibration curves using a quartz reference standard for FTIR. The portable dust generator can generate dust clouds of host materials in varying to determine when control strategies are required to be employed. It also provides a means to generate samples of host material for identification of analytical interferences of portable instruments.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There are challenges associated with end-of-shift monitoring as well as in-eld measurement of RCS 5,6 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Validation of a Novel Dust Generator using Respirable Crystalline Silica

Noi,

Davies,

Apthorpe

et al. 2024

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Real-Time Dust Monitoring in Occupational Environments: A Case Study on Using Low-Cost Dust Monitors for Enhanced Data Collection and Analysis

Wolfe,

Cauda,

Yekich

et al. 2024

Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration

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Applying Finite Mixture Models to Quantify Respirable Dust Mass in Coal and Metal–Nonmetal Mines Using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy

Weakley,

Parks,

Miller

2024

Appl Spectrosc

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Respirable dust mass is a prevalent occupational health hazard to the mining workforce. Mineral matrices observed in the mine environment are complex, time varying, and heterogeneous. This poses a challenge to assessing dust exposure using Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrometry as calibrations for constituent dust species (e.g., crystalline silica) have historically been trained using homogeneous standards or simple mixtures therein. Investigations have considered direct-on-filter analysis, which collects FT-IR spectra directly from sampling filters for calibration, as an alternative. Direct-on-filter analysis using a partial least squares (PLS) method has gained particular interest recently due to the potential to rapidly quantify multiple species from a single filter at the mine site. By design, heterogeneity, and its presumed impact on method accuracy, cannot be addressed in the laboratory when using a direct-on-filter approach motivating the need for more advanced calibration approaches. When heterogeneity is present, mixture of experts (MoE) finite mixture models offer a promising and novel alternative to PLS direct-on-filter analysis as MoE incorporates cluster discovery, regression, and outlier identification into model fitting. Three MoE models of increasing complexity were tasked with determining respirable dust mass in 243 field samples from thirteen active coal, limestone, sandstone, and silver mines. All MoE models, including those using only “expert” spectroscopic predictors or a combination of expert and categorical “gate” variables (e.g., mine type), significantly outperform PLS in terms of accuracy (α = 0.05). Decomposing bias by mine type shows that accuracy generally improves across all types considered when MoE models are not overfitted. The MoE method’s effectiveness was linked to its ability to endogenously classify outliers as well as possibly to the use of an additional cluster model for mass predictions. Overall, MoE methods appear as a capable and novel tool to addressing problems of heterogeneity for direct-on-filter quantitative analysis.

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Benefits and limitations of field-based monitoring approaches for respirable dust and crystalline silica applied in a sandstone quarry

Cited by 3 publications

References 28 publications

Validation of a Novel Dust Generator using Respirable Crystalline Silica

Validation of a Novel Dust Generator using Respirable Crystalline Silica

Real-Time Dust Monitoring in Occupational Environments: A Case Study on Using Low-Cost Dust Monitors for Enhanced Data Collection and Analysis

Applying Finite Mixture Models to Quantify Respirable Dust Mass in Coal and Metal–Nonmetal Mines Using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy

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