Research project Nano-Quartz

There is dust in the air at stone crushers - in beach volleyball halls - at construction sites – and in the dust there are small quartz particles that can be harmful to health. But how many of them are there exactly? – in the Nano-quartz project we investigate this matter (2020 – 2024)
Machines to make gravel and sand

Crushing and sifting rocks for gravel and sand. Photo: Karine Elihn

We are conducting workplace measurements of airborne quartz nanoparticles as a step towards solving the mystery of why quartz dust causes so many adverse health effects even at low concentrations. Processes that produce either fresh (e.g. stone crushing) or aged (e.g. sieving sand) particles will be investigated in the project because they have different reactive particle surfaces and thus different potential to cause morbidity. In Sweden, over 200,000 people are occupationally exposed to quartz dust, and it causes several health effects such as silicosis and lung cancer. Nanoparticles will be investigated in the project as they have often proven to be more dangerous to health than larger particles. Is the number of nanoparticles in the air the answer to the mystery?

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