Page:NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods - 0501.pdf/1

 Rh DEFINITION: total aerosol mass

METHOD: 0501, Issue 1

15 mg/m³, total dust (inert or nuisance dust; particles not otherwise regulated) [1]

no REL

For other OELs and guidelines:   See references [2,3] Contains no asbestos and less than 1% quartz

Nuisance dusts; particles not otherwise specified (PNOS)

SAMPLING

INTERNAL CAPSULE (tared 37-mm, 2- to 5-µm PVC filter melded to PVC housing) in 37-mm 2-piece cassette 1 to 2 L/min 17 L @ 15 mg/m³ 333 L @ 15 mg/m³ Routine 28 days minimum Minimum of 2 field blanks per batch

ACCURACY

0.1 to 4 mg per sample 0.058 [4] 0.059 [4] ± 15.5%

MEASUREMENT

GRAVIMETRIC (INTERNAL CAPSULE WEIGHT) Airborne particulate material 0.001 mg sensitivity; use same balance before and after sample collection National Institute of Standards & Technology Class S-1.1 weights or ASTM Class 1 weights 0.25 to 5 mg per sample 0.075 mg per sample 0.031 @ ≈2 mg per sample [4]

The working range is 2.5 to 50 mg/m³ for a 100-L air sample. This method is nonspecific and determines the ‘total’ dust concentration to which a worker is exposed.

Moisture and static electricity can affect gravimetric measurements. Humidity control and minimization of static effects are addressed in this procedure.

The method is similar to Method 5100 for carbon black [5]. This method is preferred over 0500, Issue 2 [6]. OSHA method PV2121 describes a similar procedure (but for respirable sampling) using an alternative sampler design [7].

NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods (NMAM), Fifth Edition