Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 14, 2026
15:19
Development of Sulfidogenic Sludge from Marine Sediments and Trichloroethylene Reduction in an Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket Reactor
Published on: October 15, 2015
10.2K
The relationship between solvent use and BTEX concentrations in occupational environments.
Eduardo Monteiro Martins1, Priscila Falcão de Sá Borba1, Neemias Espindola Dos Santos1
1Faculty of Engineering, Rio de Janeiro State University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
|October 9, 2016
Summary
Indoor air quality is a concern, with benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (BTEX) posing health risks in workplaces. Toluene levels were highest indoors, indicating significant BTEX sources in paint and varnish areas.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Occupational Hygiene
- Analytical Chemistry
Background:
- Indoor air quality (IAQ) is a growing public health concern due to prolonged exposure in confined spaces.
- Benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (BTEX) are volatile organic compounds with known toxic, mutagenic, and carcinogenic properties.
- Workers in industries like paint, carpentry, and varnish are at risk of exposure to indoor air pollutants.
Purpose of the Study:
- To monitor BTEX concentrations in paint, carpentry, and varnish workplaces.
- To assess the potential health risks associated with BTEX exposure for workers.
- To identify primary sources of BTEX pollution in these occupational settings.
Main Methods:
- Air sampling using coconut shell cartridges.
- Chemical analysis of BTEX compounds via gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS).
- Collection of samples from indoor workplaces, outdoor areas, and products used.
Main Results:
- Toluene exhibited the highest indoor concentrations and indoor/outdoor ratios, pointing to paint and varnish workshops as significant BTEX sources.
- Paint workshops showed the highest concentrations of benzene and toluene.
- Varnish workshops recorded the highest concentrations of ethylbenzene and xylenes.
- The highest non-carcinogenic health risks were linked to m+p-xylenes in the varnish workplace.
Conclusions:
- Paint and varnish industries are significant contributors to indoor BTEX pollution.
- Occupational exposure to BTEX in these workplaces poses considerable non-carcinogenic health risks, particularly from xylenes.
- Effective IAQ management strategies are crucial in these environments to protect worker health.
Related Concept Videos
01:36Types of Toxins
3.9K
Humans continually engage with an environment rich in potentially harmful chemicals. These are introduced to our bodies through inhalation, ingestion, or skin contact. These chemicals exist in various forms, such as air and environmental pollutants, agricultural chemicals, organic solvents, and heavy metals.
Air pollutants, primarily gases, pose significant threats to respiratory health, leading to conditions like hypoxia, lung cancer, and in extreme cases, death.
Environmental pollutants like...
Air pollutants, primarily gases, pose significant threats to respiratory health, leading to conditions like hypoxia, lung cancer, and in extreme cases, death.
Environmental pollutants like...
3.9K
01:12Solvents
71.9K
A solvent is a substance, most often a liquid, that can dissolve other substances. Here, the substance being dissolved is called a solute. When a solvent and a solute combine, they form a solution - a homogenous mixture of both the solvent and the solute. Water is a universal biological solvent. Its polar structure allows it to dissolve many other polar compounds. The ability of water to dissolve is governed by a balance between water molecules binding to each other and binding to the solute.
A...
A...
71.9K
01:16Titration in Nonaqueous Solvents
1.5K
Most acid-base titrations are performed in an aqueous medium. In aqueous titrations, water competes with weaker acids or bases for proton donation or acceptance, leading to ambiguous endpoints in the titration curve. Water also affects the partial ionization of weak acids or bases. For example, water accepts a proton from acetic acid to form hydronium and acetate ions. The hydronium ion formed is a stronger acid than acetic acid, and the acetate ion is a stronger base than water. As a result,...
1.5K
02:24Ideal Solutions
23.2K
According to Raoult’s law, the partial vapor pressure of a solvent in a solution is equal or identical to the vapor pressure of the pure solvent multiplied by its mole fraction in the solution. However, Raoult's Law is only valid for ideal solutions. For a solution to be ideal, the solvent-solute interaction must be just as strong as a solvent-solvent or solute-solute interaction. This suggests that both the solute and the solvent would use the same amount of energy to escape to the...
23.2K
02:48Expressing Solution Concentration
71.9K
A solute is a component of a solution that is typically present at a much lower concentration than the solvent. Solute concentrations are often described with qualitative terms such as dilute (of relatively low concentration) and concentrated (of relatively high concentration).
Concentrations may be quantitatively assessed using a wide variety of measurement units, each convenient for particular applications. Molarity (M) is a useful concentration unit for many applications in chemistry.
Concentrations may be quantitatively assessed using a wide variety of measurement units, each convenient for particular applications. Molarity (M) is a useful concentration unit for many applications in chemistry.
71.9K
02:23Autoxidation of Ethers to Peroxides and Hydroperoxides
9.9K
Ethers represent a class of chemical compounds that become more dangerous with prolonged storage because they tend to form explosive peroxides when standing in the air. Autoxidation is the spontaneous oxidation of a compound in air. In the presence of oxygen, ethers slowly oxidize to form hydroperoxides and dialkyl peroxides.
9.9K