Personal Exposure to Benzene and 1,3-Butadiene from Petroleum Products during Loading Activities in the Oil Harbor

Abstract

Personal Exposure to Benzene and 1,3-Butadiene from Petroleum Products during Loading Activities in the Oil HarborAbstract Number:1759 Magnus Akerstrom*, Pernilla Almerud, Lisa Svedbom, Bo Strandberg, Gerd Sallsten Magnus Akerstrom* Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Sahlgrenska University Hospital and Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, E-mail Address: [email protected] Search for more papers by this author , Pernilla Almerud Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Sahlgrenska University Hospital and Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, E-mail Address: [email protected] Search for more papers by this author , Lisa Svedbom Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Sahlgrenska University Hospital and Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, E-mail Address: [email protected] Search for more papers by this author , Bo Strandberg Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Sahlgrenska University Hospital and Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, E-mail Address: [email protected] Search for more papers by this author , and Gerd Sallsten Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Sahlgrenska University Hospital and Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, E-mail Address: [email protected] Search for more papers by this author AbstractWorkers in the refinery industry are exposed to a mixture of hydrocarbons, including the human carcinogens benzene and 1,3-butadiene (IARC group 1). The aim of this study was to assess the personal exposure to these carcinogens, among oil harbor workers, during loading petroleum products to ships. We performed repeated personal exposure measurements on 21 jetty- and dockworkers (n=34) involved in the loading of gasoline and BTX (a benzene, toluene and xylene mixture). The measurements were done using Perkin-Elmer diffusive samplers filled with Carbopack-X and the concentrations of benzene and 1,3-butadiene were analyzed using an automatic thermal desorber connected to a gas chromatograph and mass spectrometer detector. Mean concentrations and within- and between workers variability were calculated using mixed effects models. The mean personal exposure for benzene was 0.31 mg/m3 (95% CI; 0.08 – 1.2 mg/m3) and the occupational exposure limit (1.5 mg/m3) was exceeded for 2 of the 34 samples. Jetty workers had somewhat higher exposures than dockworkers; 0.45 mg/m3 (95% CI; 0.11 – 1.9 mg/m3) vs 0.14 mg/m3 (95% CI; 0.03 – 0.69 mg/m3). Loading of BTX was found to be a significant determinant (p=0.006) for benzene exposure. The 1,3-butadiene exposure was low, with a mean exposure for all workers of 0.003 mg/m3 (95% CI; 0.002 – 0.005 mg/m3). The total variability was dominated by the within worker variability for both carcinogens. The results show that the oil harbor workers are exposed to relatively high levels of benzene, during loading operations of benzene containing products, compared to other occupational groups within the refinery industry.