Construction of an exposure chamber for animals and its use for inhalation exposure to welding fumes and gases.

An inhalation exposure system, consisting of an inhalation chamber and an generating and feeding device for welding fumes and gases with a welding robot, was constructed and examined for its application to experimental toxicology for ventilatory responses of conscious rats to welding fumes and gases. The exposure system allowed an inhalation of fresh welding fumes and gases, and could supply airflow containing stable concentrations of fumes and ozone even the levels exceeding those corresponding occupational exposure limit values were supplied into the exposure chamber. The air temperature in the chamber was kept constant under rat's physiological conditions. Rats were exposed to fresh welding fumes and gases and examined for their ventilatory responses with a body plethysmograph in the chamber. A transient increase in breathing frequency with a concomitant decrease in the tidal volume was observed within several minutes immediately after the start of welding operation. The rapid, shallow breathing response disappears after repeated exposures, indicating rapid adaptation of this ventilatory response to inhalation of welding fumes and gases.