Potential for Respirable Quartz Exposure from North Carolina Farm Soils

Sandy-loam soils from six active farms in the coastal plains of North Carolina (USA) were analyzed for aerodynamic equivalent diameter and quartz content and compared with results to similar analyses of clay soils of the Piedmont and sandy soils from the sand hills of North Carolina to see whether r...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment ＆ Health Environment ＆ Health, 1995-01, Vol.21 (2), p.44-46
Main Authors: Stopford, Charles M, Stopford, Woodhall
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agricultural soils
Agriculture
Agrology
Clay soils
Coastal plain soils
Crops
Dust - analysis
Humans
Industrial agriculture
North Carolina
Occupational Exposure - analysis
Particle Size
Quartz
Quartz - analysis
Sand soils
Sandy loam soils
Silica sampling, industrial hygiene and modeling
Soil - analysis
Soil water
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Summary:Sandy-loam soils from six active farms in the coastal plains of North Carolina (USA) were analyzed for aerodynamic equivalent diameter and quartz content and compared with results to similar analyses of clay soils of the Piedmont and sandy soils from the sand hills of North Carolina to see whether respirable quartz content varies with soil type. The respirable fraction of sandy loam-soils averaged 0.04 (SD 0.02) versus 0.13 (SD 0.03) for clay soils and 0.04 (SD 0.03) for sandy soils. Quartz content in the 4.25 µm fraction of sandy-loam soils averaged 15.2 (SD 4.1) % versus 2.2 (SD0.8) % in clay soils and 29.0 (SD 11.1) % in sandy soils. The mass of respirable quartz in sandy-loam soils averaged 0.7 (SD 0.4)% versus 0.3 (SD 0.1)% in clay soils and 1.0 (SD 0.4) % in sandy soils. These results suggest that, during dusty farm activities, there is a potential for greater respirable quartz exposures associated with work with sandy or sandy-loam soils than from work with clay soils.
ISSN:0355-3140
1795-990X