Respirable crystalline silica in the ceramic industries

This paper describes the work carried out during the development of the SILICERAM project, executed during the years 2004 to 2007, explaining both its goals and the actions carried out. It presents the equipment designed and constructed for sampling airborne particulate matter in the workplaces, and also the physicochemical determintions and toxicological tests carried out on the dust collected. Finally, it outlines the most important findings and conclusions that have been obtained in this project, as well as some measures and good practices that could be implemented in the ceramics industries to avoid or minimise the presence of dust in the atmosphere.