National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, Japan
The Work Environment Research Group focuses on measurement, evaluation, and prediction of occupational hazards of chemical substances, dust, and physical factors. The research activities for chemical hazards and dust comprise development of methods of measurement and analysis of chemical substances, application of new technologies to local exhaust ventilation (LEV) systems, and performance evaluations of adsorbents for gas filters of respirators. The research activities for physical factors include examinations of the physical, physiological and psychological effects of human vibration, noise, low-frequency noise, heat strain, and non-ionizing radiation. The results obtained from these research activities can be applied to the construction of prediction strategies for the related occupational disorders and the development and performance evaluation of personal protective equipment.
Prediction of the vibration attenuation performance of AV gloves for tool-specific vibration.
Measurement of the threshold level for vibratory sensation when exposed to low-frequency noise.
Investigation of the optimum conditions for control of contaminants by push - pull ventilation system.
Evaluation of heat stress at a summer construction site.
Research on performance evaluations of adsorbents for gas filters of respirators used in various workplaces and sampling agents for organic vapors used in work environment measurements. We also perform more detailed investigations the effective use of the adsorbent materials.
Development of a highly selective analytical method for aromatic amines on sulfuric acid-impregnated filters by HPLC.
Members
Official position
Name
Field of study
Director
Yukio Takahashi
Effects of noise (especially, low-frequency noise) on humans
Jun Ojima
Industrial hygiene
Hironobu Abiko
Applied materials chemistry for industrial and occupational hygiene
