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Evaluation of Low-Cost Optical Particle Counters for Agricultural Exposure Measurements
JUSTINE OLEGARIO, Swastika Regmi, Sinan Sousan, East Carolina University
Abstract Number: 64
Working Group: Health-Related Aerosols
Abstract
Prolonged exposure to dust has been shown to have negative health effects in agricultural workers, primarily with the development of respiratory diseases. Low-cost sensors may be cost-effective tools for farmers to use in determining when they are exposed to harmful levels of dust during their workday. The purpose of this study is to identify low-cost sensors that may be reliably used in occupational settings to help workers and employers identify how much respirable particle matter is being inhaled. The study utilized two different low-cost optical particle counters (OPCs) to collect data on dust exposure which were worn on a belt by the participant: the OPC-N3 developed by Alphasense and the AirBeam2 developed by HabitatMap. Additionally, an AirChek TOUCH air sampling pump fit with a respirable dust aluminum cyclone allowed for collection of respirable particulate matter (PM4) to determine the true concentration of exposure. Results from data analysis suggests that the AirBeam2 may be greatly underestimating the amount of particulate matter that farmworkers are exposed to and therefore may not be suitable for occupational exposure measurements in comparison to the OPC-N3. Comparison of the PM4 measurements made by the OPC-N3 are similar to the gravimetrical filter measurement at concentrations of < 50 µg/m3.