The New OSHA Standard for Industrial Silica Exposure: Are You in Compliance?

AIR POLLUTION CONTROL

OSHA STANDARD FOR INDUSTRIAL SILICA

EXPOSURE: ARE YOU IN COMPLIANCE?

OSHA has issued a final rule that provides stronger protection for workers against the harmful effects of respirable crystalline silica dust. If your processes produce dust, you may have a respirable silica dust hazard, and you need to determine if your facility is at risk.

Silica is Everywhere

Crystalline silica is one of the

most abundant minerals on

the planet. It is estimated that

silica makes up 59 percent of

the earth’s crust and is found

in nearly all known rocks. It is

therefore not surprising that

silica dust turns up in a wide

range of industrial processes

and applications.

Key Provisions of the Industrial Silica Rule• Reduced exposure limit: 50 micrograms/m3 of air,

averaged over 8-hour work shift

• Engineering controls: Water to keep dust down and/

or dust collection (ventilation)

• Exposure control plan: Written hazard plan to limit

access to high-exposure areas, training

• Medical Surveillance: Exams, lung health

monitoring, record keeping for “highly exposed

workers”

Deadline for compliance: June 23, 2018

HEALTH RISKSSilicosis is a progressive and

often fatal disease of the lungs and is also classified as a

human carcinogen that causes lung cancer.

Silicosis cannot be cured, so prevention – accomplished by minimizing human exposure – is the best and only strategy.

HOW TO DETERMINE IF

YOU ARE IN COMPLIANCE

Are your workers exposed to harmful levels of silica? Wherever a process

generates crystalline silica dust, OSHA states that air monitoring must

be performed to determine a worker’s 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA)

exposure. Several different accepted methods of monitoring are listed

in Appendix A of the ruling.

THE ROLE OF A DUST COLLECTORA well-designed dust collector is an accepted and proven engineering control that will filter hazardous contaminants to make indoor environments safer and healthier. Dry media dust collectors containing high efficiency cartridge filters along with HEPA secondary filters are the best control for respirable particulate, ensuring that it will not spread and be inhaled by workers in other areas of the plant.

THE IMPORTANCE OF DUST TESTINGThe first step of lab testing silica dust is particle size analysis. This allows proper selection of filter media with regard to the efficiency required at various particle sizes. Testing also determines moisture content of the dust, which can have an impact on the performance of a dust collector.

1Maintenance PracticesEven the longest-lasting filters need to be replaced eventually: Change-out is required when differential pressure through the system reaches the maximum level specified by the filter manufacturer. This is very important to ensure that filters are effectively controlling dust. Maintenance personnel must be trained in proper service procedures.

2Maintenance PracticesPrior to change-out, pulse the filters down to remove as much dust as possible and don’t open the access door until the dust has had time to settle. Promptly after removing the used filters, place them in the same boxes in which the new filters were shipped and seal them to prevent dust from escaping. Insert the new filters and close up the system as quickly as possible. You can dispose of the boxed filters as regular (i.e., non-hazardous) waste.

3Maintenance PracticesYour dust collector should be equipped with a waste storage container such as a drum or bin. This storage container must be emptied regularly, or dust can back up into the hopper. Dust sitting in a hopper can affect performance adversely by clogging up the system and preventing the pulse-cleaning system from doing its job. If dust overflows from the hopper or the storage container onto the shop floor, it creates a potential health hazard to everyone in the workspace.

4Maintenance PracticesFinally, general housekeeping practices recommended by OSHA also include the use of water spraying to keep dust down, and/or cleaning with an ordinary shop vacuum to prevent dust from building up on floors and other surfaces before it can become airborne. Brushes, brooms, and compressed air systems should not be used because they will disperse dust particles into the atmosphere.

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