Engineering Controls Database
Control of Exposure to Perchloroethylene in Commercial Dry Cleaning by Isolation
| Perchloroethylene (PERC) is the most commonly used dry cleaning solvent. PERC can enter the body through respiratory and dermal exposure. | |
| Symptoms associated with PERC exposure include: depression of the central nervous system; damage to the liver and kidneys; impaired memory; confusion; dizziness; headache; drowsiness; and eye, nose and throat irritation. Repeated dermal exposure may result in dry, scaly and fissured dermatitis. | |
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ISOLATION "Isolation" describes the placement of a physical or time barrier between the hazard and the worker. Process isolation can occur in two ways: between shops and within shops. An example of isolation between shops is when businesses use "satellite shops," where no drycleaning occurs. Workers at the "satellite shop" are isolated from significant exposures to PERC associated with drycleaning operations. Because the majority of PERC emissions originate from the drycleaning machine, isolating employees by either time or space from the drycleaning machines can reduce worker exposures. Isolation within shops is not frequently used and tends to be ineffective unless appropriate ventilation is used. Process isolation within shops can be more easily achieved in larger shops than smaller shops because they have more space and provide greater flexibility for isolating high exposure processes. Some facilities have built a wall or barrier within the shop to separate the drycleaning machine from other areas of the shop. The EPA (EPA [1994]. New regulation controlling emissions from dry cleaners [brochure]. Washington, DC: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards (MD-10), EPA 453/F-94-025, U.S. GPO 1994-530-367) currently requires drycleaning shops with a transfer machine that uses over 1,800 gallons of PERC per year to install a room enclosure and vent the enclosure to a carbon absorber.Room enclosures have the potential to increase worker exposures by preventing vapors from rapidly leaving the work environment. Room enclosures are one method to address contamination of adjacent apartment buildings and food stores, situations which have become a problem for drycleaning shops in urban areas. Diffusion barriers, which are impervious to PERC vapors, have been used in Germany to prevent solvent vapors from migrating to adjacent occupancies and affecting neighbors. |
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| 201-11A; 201-12A; 201-13A; 201-13B; 201-14A; 201-15A; 201-16A; 201-17A; 201-18A; 201-19A; 240-11; 240-12; 240-13; 240-14; 240-15; 256-16B; 256-17B; 256-18B; 256-19B; | |
| NIOSH [1997]. NIOSH Report: Control of health and safety hazards in commercial drycleaners: chemical exposures, fire hazards, and ergonomic risk factors. Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. DHHS (NIOSH) Publication No. 97-150. | |
| 812;8123 | |
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dry cleaning dry cleaning garments stains |