From Exposure to PPE: How to Protect against Ultrafine Particles in an Occupational Environment

Introduction
Marie D’Iorio, President, NanoCanada

Best practices guidance for nanomaterial risk management in the workplace
Maximilien Debia, University of Montreal

Risk assessment of occupational exposure to airborne nanomaterial using numerical simulation
Stéphane Hallé, École de technologie supérieure

Impact of airborne nanomaterial characterization on risk assessment and protection
Loïc Wingert, Institut de recherche Robert-Sauvé en Santé et en Sécurité du Travail

Closing remarks
Marie D’Iorio, President, NanoCanada

Maximilien Debia

'Best practices guidance for nanomaterial risk management in the workplace.'

Maximilien Debia is professor at the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health (DSEST) of the School of Public Health of the University of Montreal. Professor Debia is responsible with Professor Lavoué of the occupational hygiene option of the master’s degree in environmental and occupational health. He is the scientific co-editor of the journal Travail et Santé. Its research activities aim to evaluate and control occupational exposures to various contaminants including nanometric particles.

Stéphane Hallé

'Risk assessment of occupational exposure to airborne nanomaterial using numerical simulation.'

Stéphane Hallé, P.Eng., Ph.D., is a professor in mechanical engineering at École de technologie supérieure where he has been a faculty member since 2003. During his career, Prof Hallé participated in 15 research projects related to aerosol. These projects focus on two main themes: 1) CFD simulations of the aerodynamic behaviour of airborne particles and the effectiveness of local/general ventilation to mitigate the exposure in workplace environments (bronchoscopy unit, thanatopraxy room, etc.) and 2) the effectiveness of personal protective equipment against aerosols. Current research emphasizes on the filtration efficiency of washable barrier mask and the development of a predictive collection efficiency model of non-woven fabrics, used for manufacturing protective clothing.

Loïc Wingert

'Impact of airborne nanomaterial characterization on risk assessment and protection.'

Loïc Wingert holds a Bachelor’s degree in Physics and Chemistry from the University of Joseph Fourier in Grenoble, France. He also holds a professional Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering with a specialization “Environment” on Chemical Processes and Effluent Treatment (solid, liquid, gaseous). He then obtained a Ph.D. from the University of Lorraine, France from the French Institute for Occupational Health and Safety (INRS, France) and from the Reactions and Process Engineering Laboratory of the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS, France). Following this PhD obtained in 2017 on the separation of ultrafine metallic particles by granular beds, he continued his career with a postdoctoral fellowship on protective clothing against solid aerosols at the École de Technologie Supérieure (ETS, Montreal) and at the Institut de recherche Robert-Sauvé en Santé et en Sécurité du Travail (IRSST, Montreal). Since 2018, as a scientific professional at the IRSST specializing in aerosols and their filtration, he has been participating in and conducting research activities to study workers exposure to aerosols (nanometric and micronic) and bioaerosols but also to evaluate the performance of certain protective equipment. Finally, he works on the metrology and characterization of aerosols applied to OHS, such as those of ultrafine particles emitted by certain processes.