Exposure assessment of butyltin manufacturing workers based on concurrent environmental and biological monitoring

The purpose of this study was to conduct an exposure assessment to determine if butyltin manufacturing operations generate quantifiable ambient exposures to exposed workers and whether a correlation exists between environmental exposure levels and levels of butyltins in urine in workers. To accomplish this assessment, two analytical methods were developed for this study, one for the analysis of samples of butyltin compounds in air and another for the collection and analysis of butyltin compounds in urine.;Organotins are considered toxic. Organotin exposure is considered an occupational hazard, with organotin formulators, antifoulant paint sprayers, and PVC compounders handling stabilizers and catalysts that contain organotins identified as having the greatest potential for occupational exposure to butyltin compounds. Effects attributed to butyltins range from mild skin irritation to chromosomal aberrations.;The field research portion of this study involved on-site evaluations to conduct exposure assessments, including air and biological (urinary), monitoring at chemical manufacturing facilities during the manufacture of butyltin compounds. Air and urine samples were collected concurrently; the air samples were collected throughout the workers' full shift and urine was collected at the beginning of each shift.;The results from the statistical analyses done on the data from this study showed butyltin manufacturing operations do generate worker exposures to butyltins and a correlation exists between the workers' airborne butyltin exposures and the presence of butyltin in their urine. T tests and ANOVA for the comparison of the means of the exposed and the control employee groups (both urine and air) results were significant (p < 0.001) and results from the correlation statistics showed a positive correlation, 0.590, (p < 0.001). Differences in the means also indicated variability of exposures exist among the different work groups.;Contributions made by this work include the confirmation that workers in butyltin manufacturing facilities experience quantifiable exposures to butyltins. An additional contribution is the newly developed analytical methods, which will enable facilities that use organotin compounds to accurately assess their employees' exposures to these substances.