AWS F1.1M:2018

An American National Standard

Methods for Sampling Fumes and Gases Generated by Welding and Allied Processes

AWS F1.1M:2018

An American National Standard

Approved by American National Standards Institute

September 29, 2017

Methods for Sampling Fumes and Gases Generated by Welding and Allied Processes

6th Edition

Supersedes AWS F1.1M:2006 and AWS F1.5M:2003

Prepared by the AWS Project Committee on Fumes and Gases

Under the Direction of the AWS Committee on Safety and Health

Approved by the AWS Board of Directors

Abstract

This document aids the reader in the proper technique for sampling welding fumes and gases in the workplace. Emphasis is placed on positioning the sampling device and calibration of the equipment.

ISBN: 978-0-87171-927-0

© 2018 by American Welding Society

All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America

Photocopy Rights. No portion of this standard may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, including mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.

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Statement on the Use of American Welding Society Standards

All standards (codes, specifications, recommended practices, methods, classifications, and guides) of the American Welding Society (AWS) are voluntary consensus standards that have been developed in accordance with the rules of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). When AWS American National Standards are either incorporated in, or made part of, documents that are included in federal or state laws and regulations, or the regulations of other governmental bodies, their provisions carry the full legal authority of the statute. In such cases, any changes in those AWS standards must be approved by the governmental body having statutory jurisdiction before they can become a part of those laws and regulations. In all cases, these standards carry the full legal authority of the contract or other document that invokes the AWS standards. Where this contractual relationship exists, changes in or deviations from requirements of an AWS standard must be by agreement between the contracting parties.

AWS American National Standards are developed through a consensus standards development process that brings together volunteers representing varied viewpoints and interests to achieve consensus. While AWS administers the process and establishes rules to promote fairness in the development of consensus, it does not independently test, evaluate, or verify the accuracy of any information or the soundness of any judgments contained in its standards.

AWS disclaims liability for any injury to persons or to property, or other damages of any nature whatsoever, whether special, indirect, consequential, or compensatory, directly or indirectly resulting from the publication, use of, or reliance on this standard. AWS also makes no guarantee or warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of any information published herein.

In issuing and making this standard available, AWS is neither undertaking to render professional or other services for or on behalf of any person or entity, nor is AWS undertaking to perform any duty owed by any person or entity to someone else. Anyone using these documents should rely on his or her own independent judgment or, as appropriate, seek the advice of a competent professional in determining the exercise of reasonable care in any given circumstances. It is assumed that the use of this standard and its provisions is entrusted to appropriately qualified and competent personnel.

This standard may be superseded by new editions. This standard may also be corrected through publication of amendments or errata, or supplemented by publication of addenda. Information on the latest editions of AWS standards including amendments, errata, and addenda is posted on the AWS web page (www.aws.org). Users should ensure that they have the latest edition, amendments, errata, and addenda.

Publication of this standard does not authorize infringement of any patent or trade name. Users of this standard accept any and all liabilities for infringement of any patent or trade name items. AWS disclaims liability for the infringement of any patent or product trade name resulting from the use of this standard.

AWS does not monitor, police, or enforce compliance with this standard, nor does it have the power to do so.

Official interpretations of any of the technical requirements of this standard may only be obtained by sending a request, in writing, to the appropriate technical committee. Such requests should be addressed to the American Welding Society, Attention: Managing Director, Standards Development, 8669 NW 36 St, # 130, Miami, FL 33166 (see Annex D). With regard to technical inquiries made concerning AWS standards, oral opinions on AWS standards may be rendered. These opinions are offered solely as a convenience to users of this standard, and they do not constitute professional advice. Such opinions represent only the personal opinions of the particular individuals giving them. These individuals do not speak on behalf of AWS, nor do these oral opinions constitute official or unofficial opinions or interpretations of AWS. In addition, oral opinions are informal and should not be used as a substitute for an official interpretation.

This standard is subject to revision at any time by the AWS Committee on Safety and Health. It must be reviewed every five years, and if not revised, it must be either reaffirmed or withdrawn. Comments (recommendations, additions, or dele- tions) and any pertinent data that may be of use in improving this standard are required and should be addressed to AWS Headquarters. Such comments will receive careful consideration by the AWS Committee on Safety and Health and the author of the comments will be informed of the Committee’s response to the comments. Guests are invited to attend all meetings of the AWS Committee on Safety and Health to express their comments verbally. Procedures for appeal of an adverse decision concerning all such comments are provided in the Rules of Operation of the Technical Activities Committee. A copy of these Rules can be obtained from the American Welding Society, 8669 NW 36 St, # 130, Miami, FL 33166.

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Personnel

AWS Safety and Health Committee

D. E. Clark, Chair Consultant

D. Werba, Vice Chair Miller Electric Manufacturing Company

1. P. Hedrick, Secretary American Welding Society

   S. R. Fiore Hobart Brothers Company

   S. L. Foxworth ESAB Welding and Cutting Products

   M. Haaksma Orange County Ironworks, LLC

   K. A. Lyttle Consultant

   A. F. Manz A. F. Manz Associates

   1. M. Merlo-Joseph Apeks Supercritical

      J. Petkovsek The Lincoln Electric Company

      1. M Santasiero NJCTTC

      2. Solomon Extruflex North America

         
         

         Advisors to the Safety and Health Committee

      3. M. Donovan Sheet Metal Workers Local #265

         S. E. Ferree Consultant

         D. A. Fink The Lincoln Electric Company

         1. G. Harvey Hobart Brothers Company

            1. Hudson Hobart Brothers Company

1. D. Jennings Expert Services

   T. Lyon Consultant

   D. H. Sliney Consultant

   1. J. Tucker Consultant

      
      

      AWS Subcommittee on Fumes and Gases

2. A. Lyttle, Chair Consultant

1. R. Fiore, Vice Chair Hobart Brothers Company

1. P. Hedrick, Secretary American Welding Society

   D. N. Dunbar The Lincoln Electric Company

   D. A. Fink The Lincoln Electric Company

   1. L. Foxworth ESAB Welding and Cutting Products

      1. Hilbert Miller Electric Manufacturing Company

1. Hutchins Ohio BWC/Safety and Hygiene

   M. Merlo RevWires LLC

2. M. Merlo-Joseph Apeks Supercritical

J. J. Palach Pal-Tech Consulting Services

J. Petkovsek The Lincoln Electric Company

T. P. Rosiek Nederman USA, Incorporated

Advisors to the Subcommittee on Fumes and Gases

M. Amata Hobart Brothers Company

H. R. Castner Edison Welding Institute

D. E. Clark Consultant

W. H. Drake S. W. Missouri State University

T. J. Eckardt Select-Arc Incorporated

S. E. Ferree Consultant

Foreword

This foreword is not part of this standard but is included for informational purposes only.

In 1976, the American Welding Society published the first edition of AWS F1.1, Method for Sampling Airborne Partic- ulates Generated by Welding and Allied Processes, in recognition of the need to standardize the procedure for sampling contaminants in the welder's breathing zone. The Project Committee on Fumes and Gases, using expertise in welding as well as industrial hygiene, developed the technique through field testing. Minor modifications and editorial changes were made in the 1985, 1992, 1999, and 2006 editions.

In 1987, the first edition of AWS F1.5, Methods for Sampling and Analyzing Gases from Welding and Allied Processes, was published to complement AWS F1.1. Minor modifications and editorial changes were made in the 1996 and 2003 editions.

In 2009, a decision was made to combine these two standards into a single document so that information needed to accu- rately assess welder exposure in the workplace would be found in one document. This document describes commonly accepted industrial hygiene sampling techniques but no longer includes the actual analytical methods as recommended by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the Occupational Safety and Health Admin- istration (OSHA). The analytical methods are readily available and are not generally needed by industrial hygienist collecting exposure assessment samples in the workplace. Instead, these analytical methods are referenced only.

Comments and suggestions for the improvement of this standard are welcome. They should be sent to the Secretary, Safety and Health Committee, American Welding Society, 8669 NW 36 St, # 130, Miami, FL 33166.

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Table of Contents

Page No.

Personnel v

Foreword vii

List of Tables x

List of Figures x

1. Scope and General Provisions 1

   1. Scope. 1

   2. Safety 1

2. Normative References 2

3. Terms and Definitions 2

   Part A—Sampling for Fumes 2

4. Summary of Methods 2

5. Fume Concentration Exposure Conditions 3

6. Sampling Considerations 5

7. Sampling Equipment 5

8. Sample Conditioning 5

9. Sampling Technique 6

   1. Breathing Zone Helmet Test 6

   2. General Area Test 6

10. Sample Calculation for Total Fume Concentration 7

    1. Test Data 7

    2. Calculation 7

       Part B—Sampling Gases 7

11. Summary of Analytical Techniques 7

    1. General 7

    2. Instrumental Methods 7

    3. Detector Tubes and Passive Samplers 7

    4. Chemical Methods 7

    5. Interferences 8

    6. Calibration 8

12. Basic Requirements for Sampling 8

    1. General 8

    2. Sampling Periods 8

    3. Breathing-Zone Sampling 8

    4. Static Background Sampling 9

    5. Sample Filtration 9

    6. Sampling Materials 9

    7. Sampling Pump and Rate 9

       Page No.

13. Ozone (0.01 ppm to 1 ppm) 11

    1. Sampling 11

    2. Instruments 11

    3. Detector Tubes 11

    4. Chemical Method. 11

    5. Calibration 11

    6. Recommended Method 11

14. Carbon Monoxide (5 ppm to 500 ppm) 11

    1. Sampling 11

    2. Instruments 12

    3. Detector Tubes and Passive Samplers 12

    4. Chemical Methods 12

    5. Calibration 12

    6. Recommended Method 12

15. Nitric Oxide (1 ppm to 100 ppm) and Nitrogen Oxide (0.5 ppm to 25 ppm) 12

    1. Sampling 12

    2. Instruments 12

    3. Detector Tubes 12

    4. Chemical Methods 12

    5. Calibration 12

    6. Recommended Method 12

16. Fluoride Ion (0.03 mg/m3 to 1.2 mg/m3) 13

    1. Sampling 13

    2. Instruments 13

    3. Detector Tubes 13

    4. Chemical Methods 13

    5. Calibration 13

    6. Recommended Method 13

Annex A (Informative)—Calibration 15

Annex B (Informative)—Detector Tubes and Monitors 17

Annex C (Informative)—Informative References 21

Annex D (Informative)—Requesting an Official Interpretation on an AWS Standard 23

List of Tables

Table Page No.

1 Suggested Data Form for Personal or Area Fume Exposure Testing 4

List of Figures

Figure Page No.

1. Filter Cassette Assembly Properly Positioned Inside the Welding Helmet for Testing 6

2. Detector Tube 7

3. Passive Sampler or Monitor 8

4. Pump and Filter (Typical) 10

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Methods for Sampling Fumes and Gases Generated by Welding and Allied Processes

1. Scope and General Provisions

   1. Scope. This standard describes procedures for sampling fumes and gases generated by welding and allied processes. Because it is limited to health hazard evaluation, the standard is primarily concerned with sampling at the worker’s breathing zone (see 4.1). It also describes procedures for general area sampling of fumes and gases. The sampling methods described in this standard apply to the sampling of solid particulate matter as well as the gases liberated during welding and allied processes. Gases generated during welding may include, but are not limited to, the following:

      1. Ozone (O3)

      2. Carbon Monoxide (CO)

      3. Nitric Oxide (NO) + Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) = Oxides of Nitrogen (NOx)

      4. Gaseous Fluorides

         This publication is intended for use by personnel who are responsible for sample collection and evaluation of the envi- ronment of personnel involved with welding and allied processes. It provides the most widely recognized, safe methods for the sampling to be used in the evaluation of airborne concentrations of fumes and gases commonly formed during welding. Where appropriate, analytical methods have been referenced.

         While not generally present around most welding operations, it is possible to encounter toxic phosgene gas where degreasing or cleaning activities involving chlorinated hydrocarbons are carried out in close proximity to welding. Anti- spatter compounds may also contain chlorinated hydrocarbons. When vapors from these materials enter the atmosphere around the arc, a reaction between ultraviolet radiation from the welding arc and these vapors can produce phosgene. Since phosgene levels as low as 2 ppm can cause serious health impairment or even death, it is important to prevent vapors from any chlorinated hydrocarbon from entering the welding area. Consult the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for any cleaning products used in close proximity to welding processes. Sampling for phosgene is outside the scope of the proce- dures described in this standard.

         This standard makes sole use of the International System of Units (SI).

   2. Safety. Safety and health issues and concerns are beyond the scope of this standard; some safety and health informa- tion is provided, but such issues are not fully addressed herein.

      Safety and health information is available from the following sources: American Welding Society:

      1. ANSI Z49.1, Safety in Welding, Cutting, and Allied Processes

      2. AWS Safety and Health Fact Sheets

      3. Other safety and health information on the AWS website Material or Equipment Manufacturers:

1. SDSs supplied by materials manufacturers

2. Operating Manuals supplied by equipment manufacturers Applicable Regulatory Agencies