Year
2023
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Department
School of Medicine
Abstract
Australian workers are exposed to emissions from diesel engines in a variety of workplaces. Diesel particulate matter (DPM) has the potential to cause serious health impacts for exposed workers, including lung cancer, irritation, and adverse cardiovascular effects. Personal respiratory protective devices (RPD) are a common control measure to mitigate worker exposure from the damaging health impacts of DPM, and to protect against these adverse impacts they need to act as effective filters.
The filtering efficiency (FE) of RPD in current standards is determined by challenging the filter media with specified test aerosols, to calculate the penetration at designated flow rates. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to investigate whether current protocols to test FE specified in AS/NZS1716 (Standards Australia Ltd & Standards New Zealand 2012) ensure that Class P2 filters used in Australian workplaces effectively prevent workers from the adverse health impacts of inhaling DPM.
Recommended Citation
Burton, Kerrie Anne, Do AS/NZS Respiratory Protection Standards for Filter Penetration Ensure that Worker Health is Protected Against Nanoparticle Sized Diesel Particulate Matter?, Doctor of Philosophy thesis, School of Medicine, University of Wollongong, 2023. https://ro.uow.edu.au/theses1/1563
Unless otherwise indicated, the views expressed in this thesis are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the University of Wollongong.