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Mining Contract: Feasibility Testing of a Near Real Time Respirable Silica Monitor
Keywords: Personal dust monitors Respiratory system diseases Silica dust
This page is archived for historical purposes and is no longer being maintained or updated.
Contract #
75D30118C03021Start Date
9/24/2018End Date
4/21/2020Research Concept
This contract will test the feasibility of developing a technology for testing respirable silica dust via a near real-time monitoring device to be used during coal miners' shifts.
Contract Status & Impact
This contract is complete. To receive a copy of the final report, send a request to mining@cdc.gov.
Silica dust is generated incidental to the mining and processing activities of coal, industrial minerals, metal, sandstone and gravel. Silicosis is an occupational lung disease caused by inhalation of crystalline silica dust, which results in inflammation and scarring in the upper lobes of the lungs.
The intent of this work is to develop hardware and a measurement system that could eventually be developed into a wearable configuration to measure respirable silica dust during a miner's working shifts.  The goal of the contract is to determine the performance of Quantum Cascade Technology (QCL) as it relates to a potentially field deployable, wearable, near real-time silica measurement system that supports OSHA and MSHA silica standards. Thermo Fisher Scientific will produce a prototype and conduct experiments on silica identification, detection limit, repeatability, and system stability when exposed to environmental factors. In addition to the detection portion, sample collection equipment and techniques will be designed and tested such that a silica monitoring system can be evaluated in a "holistic" context.
OSHA rules were announced on March 24, 2016, setting a standard of 50 μg/m3 crystalline silica dust, averaged over an eight-hour shift. The rule took effect on June 23, 2016, with a five-year window of compliance. MSHA has retained the former OSHA limit of 100 μg/m3 of crystalline silica dust per shift.

See Also
Best Practices for Dust Control in Coal Mining
Best Practices for Dust Control in Coal Mining. Second edition.
Best Practices for Dust Control in Metal/Nonmetal Mining
Characterization of Coal Mine Dust Size Distribution, Chemical Composition, and Source Contributions
Evaluation of Diffuse Reflection Infrared Spectrometry for End-of-Shift Measurement of a-quartz in Coal Dust Samples
Filter Media and Holder Compatible with Personal Dust Monitor and End-of-Shift Crystalline Silica Quantification by Raman and FTIR Spectroscopy
PDM3700-Compatible Filter Module Usable with Portable/Field-deployable Silica Monitoring Instruments
A Review of Occupational Silica Exposures on Continuous Mining Operations
Silica Adds to Respirable Dust Concerns: What If You Could Know the Silica Dust Levels in a Coal Mine After Every Shift?
Using Real-Time Respirable Dust Monitors to Address the Silica Health Hazard in Mining
Page last reviewed: March 25, 2022
Page last updated: January 9, 2019
Content source: National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Mining Program
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