037 -- Preliminary Study on the Efficiency of Air Showers to Decontaminate Workers from Dust

An air shower is a self-contained enclosure that uses high velocity jets of air to help decontaminate personnel. It is usually used prior to entering or when exiting a controlled environment such as a cleanroom. Air showers are also used by personnel performing operations that generate a high quantity of dust before they head back to the changing room or the canteen, for example. In this context, the aim of using air showers is not to protect the clean environment but to protect the workers from dust contamination. In addition to the high velocity jets, which remove dust from workers’ clothes, a descending flow evacuates the contaminated air from the enclosure and limits the quantity of aerosols near the worker’s face. However, there is a lack of quantitative knowledge regarding 1) the efficiency of air showers to remove dust from clothes, 2) the quantity of dust near the respiratory tract during the process, and 3) the quantity of dust that pierces through the fabric to contaminate the worker directly through the skin. The second point could lead to recommendations regarding the need for respiratory protection and help determine which are appropriate. This paper first consists of a literature review focusing on scientific works that aimed to characterise air shower efficiency and their impact on users’ health and safety. Field measurements have been conducted to evaluate dust concentration near the respiratory tract and the mass of dust on workers’ clothes. Results of these measurements are also detailed in this article.