Dust entry
Airborne selenium particulate generated during handling or processing of elemental selenium or selenium-containing materials.
The form describes what is suspended in air at the point of exposure. A material can produce more than one form, such as dust during handling and fume during heating.
The NIOSH occupational-disease reference describes elemental selenium as occurring in red amorphous-powder, gray, and red-crystal forms, supporting the separate powder/dust form represented here.
Se, selenium, exists in three forms: a red amorphous powder, a grey form, and red crystals.
The NIOSH Pocket Guide gives selenium a 0.2 mg/m³ time-weighted-average REL and identifies inhalation, ingestion, skin, and eye routes; reported effects include irritation, visual disturbance, breathing difficulty, bronchitis, gastrointestinal disturbance, dermatitis, and eye or skin burns.
NIOSH REL TWA 0.2 mg/m³. Exposure Routes inhalation, ingestion, skin and/or eye contact. Symptoms irritation eyes, skin, nose, throat; visual disturbance; headache; chills, fever; dyspnea (breathing difficulty), bronchitis; metallic taste, garlic breath, gastrointestinal disturbance; dermatitis; eye, skin burns. Target Organs Eyes, skin, respiratory system, liver, kidneys, blood, spleen.