Experimental estimation of migration and transfer of organic substances from consumer articles to cotton wipes: Evaluation of underlying mechanisms

Abstract

The aim of this work was to identify the key mechanisms governing transport of organic chemical substances from consumer articles to cotton wipes. The results were used to establish a mechanistic model to improve assessment of dermal contact exposure. Four types of PVC flooring, 10 types of textiles and one type of inkjet printed paper were used to establish the mechanisms and model. Kinetic extraction studies in methanol demonstrated existence of matrix diffusion and indicated the presence of a substance surface layer on some articles. Consequently, the proposed substance transfer model considers mechanical transport from a surface film and matrix diffusion in an article with a known initial total substance concentration. The estimated chemical substance transfer values to cotton wipes were comparable to the literature data (relative transfer ∼ 2%), whereas relative transfer efficiencies from spiked substrates were high (∼ 50%). For consumer articles, high correlation (r(2)=0.92) was observed between predicted and measured transfer efficiencies, but concentrations were overpredicted by a factor of 10. Adjusting the relative transfer from about 50% used in the model to about 2.5% removed overprediction. Further studies are required to confirm the model for generic use.

Dermal uptake and percutaneous penetration of organophosphate esters in a human skin ex vivo model

“…For example, if OPEs are absorbed from air into skin oils as suggested for other SVOCs by Weschler and Nazaroff (2014) it may be very similar to the current situation. On the other hand, if the majority of exposure is via contact with dust or materials, diffusion across the boundary layer or within materials may become the rate-limiting step (Clausen et al, 2016). However, studies including hand wipes, dust, air and wrist bands indicate that the correlation may be stronger between hand wipes and air than between hand wipes and dust (Stapleton et al, 2014;Hoffman et al, 2015b;Hammel et al, 2016;Xu et al, 2016).…”

Trace elements in skin-contact clothes and migration to artificial sweat: Risk assessment of human dermal exposure

“…Moreover, studies of risk assessment of dermal exposure to chemicals through skin-contact clothes are extremely limited. [39][40][41][42] In the present investigation, the dermal contact exposure to elements and human health risks was assessed by analyzing the levels of 28 elements in 37 skin-contact clothes (T-shirts, blouses, socks, baby pajamas and bodies). In order to establish a more realistic exposure assessment, migration experiments were also carried out by determining the concentration of the same 28 elements in artificial sweat.…”

Dermal transfer quantification of nanoparticles from nano-enabled surfaces

“…three wiping events) on each surface to test for potential dermal transfer after multiple uses. The wiping procedure was executed on a laboratory weighing scale, in order to ensure that similar pressure was exerted during all wiping events (approximately 500 g/cm 2 , which is similar to the force exerted by a person sitting on a chair, according to Clausen et al (2016)). Because of the size of the weighing scale, size of keyboard cover samples had to be adjusted to the confined area that could fit on the scale.…”