Aerosol Generation from the Sanding, Cutting, and Breaking of Floor Tiles

Abstract

AbstractVarious types of floor tile were tested in a controlled and isolated environment to determine quantitatively the wear rate and size characteristics of material generated from floor tile during operations of sanding, cutting, and breaking. Size characteristics were determined for the aerosolized fractions as well as the settled material worn from the tile surface. In addition to the vinyl composition tile, tests were also conducted with floor tile containing various amounts of glass fiber and sodium phosphate fibers. The tests were conducted in a specially designed glove box which allowed complete sampling and fractionization of the generated aerosol. Due to good measurement repeatability, aerosol generation differences from the various flooring types were determinable.A Frick‐Taber accelerated wear machine was employed to establish comparative wear rates of the different flooring materials. Test results were repeatable and measured relative wear rates correlate well with published measurements. Results indicate that the presence of up to 13% glass fibers or phosphate fibers in the tile does not improve the tile's wear characteristics or significantly alter the size distribution of the generated material. Although asbestos‐containing floor tile was not tested in this study, results from the simulant fiber tile tests may enable prediction of the behavior of vinyl‐asbestos tile under the influence of similar wear mechanisms.