exposure hazard to bisphenol a for labor and particle size dis-tribution at polycarbonate molding plants

background : this research provides an insight into exposure information and particle size distributions of bisphenol a (bpa), a common environmental hormone, at polycarbonate (pc) molding plants in southern taiwan. methods : the inhalable dust sampler as iom and the micro-orifice uniform deposition impactor (moudi) were used for samples collection to evaluate the level and particle size distribution of bpa in pc molding plants. all col-lected samples were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (hplc) for bpa concentrations. results : bpa concentrations detected from the plant using optical grade pc material ranged from 32.28 to 44.97 μg/m3, which were significantly higher than bpa concentrations (16.16 to 19.39 μg/m3) detected from the plant using food grade pc material. under working environment, the particle size distribution showed a single mode distribution, with a mmad of 0.84μm and a gsd of 1.97. emission of bpa increased during heating process and most of bpa particles deposited in the nasal cavity (63.37%), following by alveolus (30.7%), and trachea-bronchus (5.93%). discussion : it is of importance that proper personal protection should be taken upon the bpa particulates released during the molding process at pc molding plants.