Evolution of efficient methods to sample lead sources, such as house dust and hand dust, in the homes of children

Conference · Tue Oct 01 00:00:00 EDT 1985 · Environ. Res.; (United States)

OSTI ID:6294178

Que Hee, S S; Peace, B; Clark, C S; Boyle, J R; Bornschein, R L; Hammond, P B

Efficient sampling methods to recover lead-containing house dust and hand dust have been evolved so that sufficient lead is collected for analysis and to ensure that correlational analyses linking these two parameters to blood lead are not dependent on the efficiency of sampling. Precise collection of loose house dust from a 1-unit area (484 cmS) with a Tygon or stainless steel sampling tube connected to a portable sampling pump (1.2 to 2.5 liters/min) required repetitive sampling (three times). The Tygon tube sampling technique for loose house dust <177 m in diameter was around 72% efficient with respect to dust weight and lead collection. A representative house dust contained 81% of its total weight in this fraction. A single handwipe for applied loose hand dust was not acceptably efficient or precise, and at least three wipes were necessary to achieve recoveries of >80% of the lead applied. House dusts of different particle sizes <246 m adhered equally well to hands. Analysis of lead-containing material usually required at least three digestions/decantations using hot plate or microwave techniques to allow at least 90% of the lead to be recovered. It was recommended that other investigators validate their handwiping, house dust sampling, and digestion techniques to facilitate comparison of results across studies. The final methodology for the Cincinnati longitudinal study was three sampling passes for surface dust using a stainless steel sampling tube; three microwave digestion/decantations for analysis of dust and paint; and three wipes with handwipes with one digestion/decantation for the analysis of six handwipes together.

• Research Organization: Univ. of Cincinnati Medical Center, OH
• OSTI ID: 6294178
• Journal Information: Environ. Res.; (United States), Vol. 38:1; Conference: 2. international conference on prospective studies of lead, Cincinnati, OH, USA, 9-11 Apr 1984
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
DUSTS
SAMPLING
LEAD
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE PATHWAY
POLLUTION SOURCES
BLOOD
CHILDREN
CONTAMINATION
CORRELATIONS
EFFICIENCY
HOUSES
MEASURING METHODS
PARTICLE SIZE
RECOMMENDATIONS
SAMPLERS
AGE GROUPS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BODY FLUIDS
BUILDINGS
ELEMENTS
EQUIPMENT
MATERIALS
METALS
RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS
SIZE
510200* - Environment
Terrestrial- Chemicals Monitoring &amp; Transport- (-1989)
500200 - Environment
Atmospheric- Chemicals Monitoring &amp; Transport- (-1989)