A Sampling and Analytical Method for Simultaneously Assessing Multiple Organic Solvent Exposures for Plastic Material Printing Industry Workers

The aim of this study is to develop methodologies suitable for conducting multiple organic solvent exposure assessments for workers in the plastic material printing industries. By reviewing the existing sampling and analytical methods for the seven organic solvents used in the industry (including isopropyl alcohol, 2-butanone, ethyl acetate, methyl isobutyl ketone, toluene, n-butyl acetate, and cyclohexanone), coconut shell charcoal is suggested as an appropriate sorbent media for collecting samples, and GC/FID is chosen as the instrument for chemical analyses. Both CS2 + 5% (v/v) 1-butanol and CS2 + 5% (v/v) isobutanol are proposed as candidate desorption reagents. Since the recovery rates obtained from the latter (83.47%–99.84%) are higher than those of the former (80.12%–98.00%), the latter is chosen in the present study. The linearities of all the resulting calibration curves are r ≥ 0.995, with recovery rates (R) of ≥ 75%, and the corresponding coefficients of variations (CV) ≤ 7% for all target organic solvents. The results also suggest that the collected samples should be stored in a –10°C environment and be analyzed within 30 days. Finally, suggestions are made for amending the storage temperatures and storage days currently promulgated in related NIOSH methods based on data obtained from present study. The proposed methodology would be beneficial to the plastic material printing industry, enabling the simultaneous assessment of workers’ exposure to multiple organic solvents.