Industrywide exposure assessment study of workers exposed to graphene and other two-dimensional nanomaterials

National Institute Of Environmental Health Sciences

Investigators

Abstract

The past decade has witnessed an extraordinary increase in research progress and innovation on ultrathin two-dimensional (2-D) nanomaterials. These 2-D nanomaterials include industrial scale materials, such as graphene, as well as emerging materials such as hexagonal boron nitride, silicene, molybdenum disulfide, and many others that have generated considerable interest as they demonstrate a vast array of unique physical properties. Two-dimensional nanomaterials offer great potential in numerous applications such as in electronics, energy storage, water remediation, paints and coatings, sensors, lighting, composites, and biomedicine. As the utilization of 2-D nanomaterials continues to rise, with greater expansion into industrial applications, the potential for workplace and environmental exposures throughout the life cycle of these materials will successively increase as well. To date, there have been relatively few studies in the published literature evaluating the toxicity of these materials, and even fewer data are available regarding workplace exposures and the development of exposure assessment methodologies. To date NIOSH has identified 89 companies potentially handling graphene or other 2-D nanomaterials. In FY22, the COVID-19 protocol amendment to resume human subjects research was approved by the NIOSH IRB. The study team conducted a site visit in September 2022 to a large chemical manufacturing facility that was sub-contracted to functionalize graphene oxide materials. During the site visit, the team recruited individuals to participate in the study. Also in FY22, the team re-established connections with relevant trade associations and unions and have recruited 3 companies to participate in the study during FY23. Laboratory aerosol characterization and aerodynamic sizing experiments were completed during FY22 on 4 graphene materials, using 6 bulk graphite materials as comparisons.