1、Effects of Weldingon Health, XIII550 N.W. LeJeune Road, Miami, FL 33126Effects of Weldingon Health, XIIIPrepared for theAWS Safety and Health CommitteeResearch performed byBiomedical Toxicology Associates6184 Viewsite DriveFrederick, Maryland 21701Written byWinifred G. Palmer, Ph.D.andJames C. Eaton
2、, P.E.AbstractThis literature review, with 176 citations, was prepared under contract to the American Welding Society for its Safetyand Health Committee. The review deals with studies of the health effects of fumes, gases, radiation, and noise generatedduring various welding processes. Section 1 sum
3、marizes recent studies of occupational exposures, Section 2 containsinformation related to human health effects, and Section 3 discusses the effects of exposures in animals.iiEWH, XIIIInternational Standard Book Number: 978-0-87171-067-3American Welding Society550 N.W. LeJeune Road, Miami, FL 33126
4、2007 by American Welding SocietyAll rights reservedPrinted in the United States of AmericaThis report is published as a service and convenience to the welding industry and is the product of an independent con-tractor (Biomedical Toxicology Associates) which is solely responsible for its contents. Th
5、e materials in this report havenot been independently reviewed or verified and are offered only as information. AWS assumes no responsibility for anyclaim that may arise from the use of this information. Users should make independent investigations to determine the appli-cability of this information
6、 for their purposes.Photocopy Rights. No portion of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in anyform, including mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyrightowner.Authorization to photocopy items fo
7、r internal, personal, or educational classroom use only or the internal, personal, oreducational classroom use only of specific clients is granted by the American Welding Society provided that the appropriatefee is paid to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, tel: (
8、978) 750-8400; Internet:.iiiEWH, XIIIPersonnelAWS Safety and Health CommitteeD. E. Clark, Chair Idaho National Engineering and Environmental LaboratoryJ. M. Antonini, 1st Vice Chair National Institute for Occupational Safety and HealthJ. D. Jennings, 2nd Vice Chair Miller Electric Manufacturing Comp
9、anyS. P. Hedrick, Secretary American Welding SocietyM. S. Anderson ConsultantK. Bancroft U.S. Geological SurveyK. L. Brown The Lincoln Electric CompanyS. E. Ferree ESAB Welding shortness of breathErythema Reddening of the skinFCAW Flux cored arc weldingGMAW Gas metal arc weldingGTAW Gas tungsten arc
10、 weldingIgA Immunoglobulin AIgG Immunoglobulin GIgM Immunoglobulin MLeukocyte White blood cellLEV Local exhaust ventilationMAC Maximum Allowable ConcentrationMAL Maximum Admissible Limitn Numbernm NanometerNIOSH National Institute for Occupational Safety and HealthNO nitric oxideOEL Occupational exp
11、osure limitOR* Odds ratioOSHA Occupational Safety and Health AdministrationPAH Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsPEL Permissible Exposure LimitPAC Plasma arc cuttingPMN Polymorphonuclear leukocyteRR* Relative riskSIR* Standardized incidence ratioSMAW Shielded metal arc weldingSMR* Standardized mortali
12、ty ratioTLV Threshold Limit ValueTWA Time-weighted averagem Micrometerg MicrogramUV Ultraviolet*Abbreviations for commonly used pulmonary function tests and for epidemiological terminology used in this documentare found in Appendices A and B, respectively. The appendices describe the derivation of t
13、hese terms and how they areused.This page is intentionally blank.viiiEWH, XIIIixEWH, XIIITable of ContentsPage No.Personnel iiiForeword vGlossaryviiList of Tables .xiList of FiguresxiIntroduction 1Executive Summary 3Technical Summary 9Section OneThe Exposure1. Fume Composition 192. Analytical Proced
14、ures .212.1 Chromium .212.2 Thorium 213. Electromagnetic Radiation 213.1 Blue Light .213.2 Ultraviolet Light .224. Incidental Exposures .224.1 Lead 224.2 Phosgene .234.3 Isocyanates245. Workplace Exposures256. Hygiene and Work Practices.286.1 Ventilation 286.2 Compliance with Health and Safety Regul
15、ations .316.3 Accidents and Injuries 31Section TwoEffects of Welding on Human Health7. Respiratory Tract.327.1 Pulmonary Function327.2 Asthma 337.3 Pneumoconiosis 347.4 Case ReportsPneumoconioisis367.5 Absences Due to Respiratory Symptoms367.6 Respiratory Tract Infections .377.7 Particle Size 378. C
16、ancer398.1 Lung Cancer408.2 Kidney Cancer 418.3 Pancreatic Cancer .428.4 Cancer of the Small Intestine428.5 Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.43xPage No.EWH, XIII8.6 Cancer of the Eye448.7 Skin Cancer.448.8 Childhood Brain Tumors 448.9 Cancer Associated with Electromagnetic Fields 449. Metal Fume Fever .4510. E
17、ffects on the Ear 4611. Effects on the Eye and Vision.4711.1 Eye Injuries .4711.2 Visual Acuity 4711.3 Retina 4711.4 Cornea.4812. Effects on the Skin 4812.1 Systemic Sclerosis 4913. Effects on the Nervous System .5013.1 Effects of Aluminum 5013.2 Effects of Manganese5114. Effects on the Cardiovascul
18、ar System.5215. Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome5316. Effects on the Endocrine System 5417. Effects on the Immune System5418. Effects on Reproduction5519. Health Surveys 5720. Genotoxicity5721. Effects of Chromium.5822. Effects of Mercury 5823. Effects of Lead 5824. Biological Monitoring.59Section ThreeI
19、nvestigations in Animals25. Inhalation Studies5925.1 Respiration 5925.2 Pulmonary Fibrosis .6025.3 Metal Fume Fever.60References 62Acknowledgments 70Appendix ACommon Measurements of Pulmonary Function .71Appendix BOccupational Epidemiology73xiEWH, XIIIList of TablesTable Page No.1 Percent Mn and Cr
20、in each Electrode and its Fume, and Ratio of Mn and Cr in the Fumes andElectrodes 192 Effect of Additives in Shielding Gas on Levels of Cr(VI) and Ozone in Fumes Generated byGMAW of Stainless Steel .203 Exposure Means Relative to Current Occupational Exposure Limits (OELs) by Analyte.274 Breathing Z
21、one Particulate Concentrations by Welding Process295 Occupational Injuries Experienced During a 3-month Period by Welders and Lathe MachineOperators .316 Symptoms Reported by Welders and Controls in Ile-Ife, Nigeria 337 Concentrations of Fine Particles (PM2.5) at Various Sites in a Welding Workplace
22、398 Relative Risk of Lung Cancer Among Welders Grouped According to Duration of Employmentas a Welder at the Shipyard Compared with other Shipyard Workers (Referents).419 Odds Ratio for Small Bowel Adenocarcinoma According to Selected Welding Exposures 4310 Odds Ratio for Acute Leukemia Cases by Occ
23、upation.4511 Risk Associated with Occupational Exposure Among 80 Cases of Systemic Sclerosis and160 Matched Controls .5012 Standardized Mortality Ratios (SMRs) of IHD in Two Cohorts of Welders and Gas CuttersFollowed Until the End of 19955213 Comparison of Occupational Exposures Reported by Patients
24、 with Male Infertility (Cases)versus Men whose Partners were Infertile 55List of FiguresFigure Page No.1 Changes in Effective Radiance (Mean Standard Deviation) for Ultraviolet Radiation at 1 meterfrom the Arc with Welding Current 232 Quantification of Ultrafine Particles in Alveolar Macrophages383
25、Frequency of Occupations Among Patients Attending the Fertility Clinic Compared with that ofthe Same Occupation in the District of Mnster .564 Number of Polymorphonuclear Leukocytes (PMNs) in Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid (BALF)from Mice 24 hours after 3-hour Exposures to 1 mg/m3ZnO for 1, 3, or 5 Da
26、ys615 Total Protein in Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid from Mice 24 hours after 3-hour Exposuresto 1 mg/m3ZnO for 1, 3, or 5 Days 61This page is intentionally blank.xiiEWH, XIII1EWH, XIIIIntroductionThe health of workers in the welding environment is a major concern of the American Welding Society. To
27、stay abreastof this subject, the health literature is periodically reviewed and published in the report Effects of Welding on Health.Twelve volumes have been published to date; the first covered data published before 1978, while the remainder covered2-year to 3-year periods between 1978 and December
28、, 1999. The current report includes information published betweenJanuary, 2000 and December, 2002. It should be read in conjunction with the previous volumes for a comprehensivetreatment of the literature on the Effects of Welding on Health. Included in Section 1 of this volume are studies of thecha
29、racteristics of welding emissions that may have an impact on the control technologies necessary to protect thewelder. In keeping with previous volumes, health reports and epidemiological studies of humans are discussed in Sec-tion 2 and organized according to the affected organ system. Research stud
30、ies in animals are discussed in Section 3.Many of the studies on the effects of welding on health published during the current report period focused on mattersthat have been explored in the older literature. The effects of welding on the respiratory tract continue to be examinedand attention has bee
31、n paid to the increased potency of respiratory tract infections in active welders. The number ofinvestigations of the association of asthma with welding has increased as the prevalence of both occupational and non-occupational asthma increases in industrialized countries worldwide. As in the past, a
32、ttention is focused on the incidenceof lung cancer in welders. Four of the five studies conducted on lung cancer during this report period showed no statisti-cally significant associations between welding and the incidence of this disease. Two reports showed that the effects onthe skin and eyes of u
33、ltraviolet radiation from the welding arc can be exacerbated by the use of photosensitizing orphoto-allergenic medications. The neurological effects of aluminum and manganese continued to receive attentionduring this report period.This page is intentionally blank.2EWH, XIIIEWH, XIII3Electromagnetic
34、RadiationBlue Light. Exposure to intense blue light in the visiblerange of 400 nm to 500 nm can cause photoretinitis withsymptoms of decreased visual acuity, blurred vision, andscotoma (blind spot). Okuno et al. (Ref. 104) examinedthe blue-light hazard associated with GMAW, SMAW,and plasma arc cutti
35、ng and found that the effective radi-ance increased with the welding current for both GMAWand SMAW. CO2-shielded GMAW had the highesteffective radiance of the arc welding and cutting proce-dures examined. The permissible daily exposure timesfor GMAW ranged from 0.63 to 2.7 seconds at differentweldin
36、g currents and those for SMAW ranged from 2.9to 5.3 seconds. While plasma arc cutting was less hazard-ous than GMAW and SMAW, it still had a high effectiveradiance with a permissible exposure time of 10 seconds.Okuno et al. concluded that the arc welding and cuttingprocesses examined are capable of
37、producing photoretin-itis with short exposures and considered them to be veryhazardous to the retina.Ultraviolet Light. Acute effects of exposure to ultravio-let (UV) light include erythema (reddening of the skin)and photokeratitis (welders flash or arc eye). The symp-toms of photokeratitis, a commo
38、n injury among welders,include ocular pain, photophobia, and a sensation of sandin the eyes. Okuno et al. (Ref. 103) determined the effec-tive radiance and corresponding permissible exposuretime for UV light generated by CO2-shielded FCAW andGMAW. The effective radiance was found to beinversely prop
39、ortional to the square of the distance fromthe arc and varied with the angle, reaching a maximumbetween 50 and 60, where the most intense UV radia-tion would be directed to the face when the workerassumes a typical welding position. At a distance of1 meter from the arc, the permissible exposure time
40、 var-ied from 4 to 100 seconds depending on the welding cur-rent. Since welders are generally closer than 1 meter tothe weld, the permissible exposure time would be lowerthan this and the exposures received by the unprotectedeye would be higher. Okuno et al. noted that UV radia-tion may also present
41、 a hazard to nearby workers since,at a distance of 10 meters from the arc, the permissibleexposure time measured under different test conditionsranged from 6 minutes to 3 hours.In a similar study, Kozlowski (Ref. 71) determined effec-tive radiances and safe exposure times for welding pro-cesses base
42、d on Polish Threshold Limit Values. Forthese studies, welding was conducted at currents thatranged from 40 A to 60 A and measurements were takenat 0.75 meters from the arc. A safe exposure time of3 seconds was determined for daily exposures to argon-shielded GMAW. For SMAW, the safe exposure timesra
43、nged from 2.3 to 7.2 seconds for three different elec-trodes. Oxyfuel gas welding and cutting presented amuch lower UV hazard as the respective safe exposuretimes were 2.5 hours and 1.43 hours.VentilationThe use of local exhaust ventilation (LEV) can reduceexposure to welding fumes, but its effectiv
44、eness varieswith the type of LEV unit (Ref. 155), the upkeep of theLEV unit (Ref. 46), and the welding habits and postureof the welder (Ref. 157). Guffey and Simcox (Refs. 46,132) demonstrated that, even when they are not wellmaintained, LEV systems can still offer some protectionto the welder. They
45、 found that high individual exposureswere usually attributed to welding posture, work prac-tices, or improper use of the LEV device. Wallace et al.(Ref. 157) described an incident in which a welder, usingan LEV device that was attached to the welding gun,moved the device upwards to avoid disturbing
46、the weld.He had much higher exposures than another welder who,when using the same device, left the exhaust hood closeto the weld but increased the shield gas flow to protectthe weld. Wallace and Fishbach (Ref. 155) noted thatlocal exhaust devices are less effective when welding isperformed outdoors
47、because of the disruption of air flowby natural wind currents. They suggested that the abilityof the welder to stand upwind of the welding plume maybe more important than the use of LEV.Smargiassi et al. (Ref. 137) examined manganese expo-sures during welding operations in a factory where acces-sori
48、es for heavy excavation machinery were assembled.Executive SummaryEWH, XIII4Each welding station was equipped with a flexible-armlocal exhaust and the welding guns all had integratedexhaust systems. Breathing zone concentrations of man-ganese varied substantially with the size of the part beingwelde
49、d. The TLV for manganese was exceeded in 78%of the total manganese samples collected during theassembly of large parts while none of the samples col-lected during the assembly of small pieces exceeded theTLV. The investigators attributed the significantlyhigher manganese exposures that occurred when weldinglarge pieces to the semi-enclosed environment repre-sented by the large buckets and scoops worked on in thisfactory and to the awkward postures that welders mustassume when working on them. They noted that theexhaust systems integrated into the GMAW equipmentused in this fact
