A comparison of cotton dust sampling techniques

Includes bibliographical references (pages 45-50)Open-faced filter cassettes (as recommended by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration) for personnel monitoring were compared with closed-faced filter cassettes preceded by a nylon cyclone for the evaluation of airborne cotton dust. The difference between the two methods as related to the performance parameters of weight and range of particle size are reported. All samples were collected in cotton seed oil mills in central California. Operator breathing zone samples were measured for total weight and particle size. Bract and other plant trash were found to be significant contaminates of airborne material in cotton seed operations; these operations included shaking and cleaning, lint stripping and bail compressing. The results showed that the concentration of airborne material expressed in milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3) remained almost constant throughout the sampling period at specific processes within each plant. However, with respect to each process, concentration levels varied between the plants studies due to differences in efficiencies of ventilation systems. Particle size for cyclone samples averaged less than 1 micron in diameter; average particle size in the OSHA procedure was estimated at 10 microns in diameter. (See more in text.