Vanadium pentoxide

IARC MONOGRAPHS VOLUME 86

244

 

 

Table 3. Occupational exposure limits and guidelines for vanadium (as V

2

O

5

 

unless otherwise specified) 

Country or region 

Concentration (mg/m

3

) 

Classification

a

 

Interpretation

b

 

Australia 

0.05 (respirable dust and fume) 

 

TWA 

Belgium 

0.5 

 

TWA 

Canada 

 Alberta 

 

 Quebec 

 

0.05 (respirable dust and fume) 

0.15 (respirable dust and fume) 

0.05 (respirable dust and fume) 

 

 

TWA 

STEL 

TWA 

China 

0.05 (dust and fume, as V) 

0.15 (dust and fume, as V) 

 

TWA 

STEL 

Finland 

0.05 (dust, as V) 

0.5 (fume, as V) 

 

TWA 

TWA 

France 

0.05 (respirable dust and fume) 

 

TWA 

Germany 

0.05 (respirable fraction) 

0.05 (respirable fraction) 

 

TWA (MAC) 

STEL 

Hong Kong SAR 

0.05 (respirable dust and fume) 

A4 

TWA 

Ireland 

0.04 (respirable dust, as V) 

0.05 (fume, as V) 

0.5 (total inhalable dust, as V) 

 

TWA 

TWA 

TWA 

Japan 

0.1 (fume) 

0.5 (dust) 

 

TWA 

TWA (JSOH) 

Malaysia 

0.05 

 

TWA  

Mexico 

0.5 (dust and fume) 

A4 

TWA 

Netherlands 

0.01 

0.03 

 

TWA 

STEL 

New Zealand 

0.05 (respirable dust and fume) 

 

TWA 

Poland 

0.05 (dust and fume) 

0.1 (fume); 0.5 (dust) 

 

TWA 

STEL 

Russian Federation 

0.1 (fume) 

0.5 (dust) 

 

MAC 

NG 

South Africa 

0.05 (respirable dust and fume) 

0.5 (total inhalable dust) 

 

TWA (DOL-RL) 

TWA 

Spain 

0.05 (respirable dust and fume) 

 

TWA 

Sweden 

0.2 (total dust, as V) 

0.05 (respirable dust, as V) 

 

TWA 

Ceiling 

Switzerland 

0.05 

0.05 

 

TWA 

STEL 

United Kingdom 

0.05 

 

TWA (MEL) 

 

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are reported in Table 4. Alveolar/bronchiolar adenomas were typical of those that occur

spontaneously in mice. Carcinomas had one or more of the following histological features;

heterogeneous growth pattern, cellular pleomorphism and/or atypia, and local invasion or

metastasis. A number of exposed males and females had multiple alveolar/bronchiolar

neoplasms. This last finding is an uncommon response in mice and, in some cases, it was

difficult to distinguish between multiplicity and metastases from other lung neoplasms.

Mice are generally not considered to respond to particulate exposure by the development

of lung neoplasms, even at high concentrations. There was a significantly-increased inci-

dence of alveolar epithelial hyperplasia and bronchiolar epithelial hyperplasia in the lungs

of exposed male and female mice. The hyperplasia was essentially a diffuse change with

proliferation of epithelium in the distal terminal bronchioles and the immediately

associated alveolar ducts and alveoli. The hyperplasia of the alveolar epithelium was

pronounced and increased in severity with increasing exposure concentration, while the

hyperplasia of the distal bronchioles was minimal to mild. Histiocytic infiltration occurred

primarily within alveoli in close proximity to alveolar/bronchiolar neoplasms, particularly

carcinomas (National Toxicology Program, 2002; Ress et al., 2003).

3.1.2

Rat

In a study undertaken by the National Toxicology Program (2002), groups of 50 male

and 50 female Fischer 344/N rats, 6–7 weeks of age, were exposed to vanadium pentoxide

particulate (light orange, crystalline solid; purity, 

≈ 99%; MMAD, 1.2–1.3 µm; GSD,

1.9

µm) at concentrations of 0, 0.5, 1 or 2 mg/m

3

by inhalation for 6 h per day on 5 days

per week for 104 weeks. No adverse effects on survival were observed in treated males

or females compared with chamber controls (survival rates: 20/50 (control), 29/50 (low

VANADIUM PENTOXIDE

245

 

Table 3 (contd) 

Country or region 

Concentration (mg/m

3

) 

Classification

a

 

Interpretation

b

 

USA

c

 

 ACGIH 

 NIOSH 

 OSHA 

 

0.05 (respirable dust and fume) 

0.05 (total dust and fume, as V) 

0.1 (fume); 0.5 (respirable dust) 

 

A4 

 

TWA (TLV) 

Ceiling (REL) 

Ceiling (PEL) 

From Sokolov (1981); INRS (1999); Työsuojelusäädöksiä (2002); ACGIH Worldwide

®

 (2003); 

Suva (2003) 

a

 A4, not classifiable as a human carcinogen; the absence of any classification does not necessarily 

mean that vanadium pentoxide has been evaluated by individual organizations as non-carcinogenic 

to humans. 

b

 TWA, time-weighted average; STEL, short-term exposure limit; MAC, maximum allowed con-

centration; JSOH, Japanese Society for Occupational Health; NG, not given; DOL-RL, Department 

of Labour-Recommended Limit; MEL, maximum exposure limit; TLV, threshold limit value; REL, 

recommended exposure limit; PEL, permissible exposure limit. 

 

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