title: [SUVA (Swiss Accident Insurance Fund) and silicosis. Silicosis in Switzerland. Development of technological dust control].
abstract: In Switzerland the technical measures against quartz dust started in 1948 when wet drilling was compulsoryly introduced, initially in underground mining. The miners using the first wet drilling machines had serious problems with water, and only with the introduction of carriage drilling machines in 1963 did the method fully break through. Dust caused by blasting operations and by loading of the resultant material was limited by ventilation and sprinkling of water. In 1966 the first full-face cutting machines were used, and it was necessary to install a dust chamber behind the drill from which dust could be taken to a dust arrester. The problem of dust limitation when using boom cutters at sectional areas of more than 20 sq. meters without a pilot tunnel has not been resolved. Since 1970, dust in quarries and stone-cutter workshops has been successfully combated by the use of exhaust pumps in combination with filters. The use of quartz sand to clean metal pieces (sandblast) was forbidden in 1960. Today, materials of the same value, but quartz-free, are available. In foundries, dust production can be limited by continuous automation and installation of exhaust pumps in moulding units. For more than 30 years now the technical equipment has been available for successful prevention of quartz dust emissions. However, at some plants it is still difficult to persuade the personnel to use the protective equipment.
mesh_terms: D004391:Dust / Q000517:prevention & control*; D004864:Equipment and Supplies; D008722:Methods; D008906:Mining; D011791:Quartz; D012822:Silicon Dioxide; D013557:Switzerland
chemical_list: D004391:Dust; D011791:Quartz; D012822:Silicon Dioxide
vernacular_title: Die SUVA und die Silikose. Die Silikose in der Schweiz. Entwicklung der technischen Staubbekämpfung.