Addendum to Toluene
Assessment Values in Biological Material – Translation of the German version from 2018
Thomas Jäger1Hans Drexler2
Andrea Hartwig3
MAK Commission4
1 BASF SE, Corporate Health Management, Carl-Bosch-Straße 38, 67056 Ludwigshafen, Germany
2 Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Institute and Outpatient Clinic of Occupational, Social, and Environmental Medicine, Henkestraße 9–11, 91054 Erlangen, Germany
3 Institute of Applied Biosciences, Department of Food Chemistry and Toxicology, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Adenauerring 20a, Building 50.41, 76131 Karlsruhe, Germany
4 Permanent Senate Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Kennedyallee 40, 53175 Bonn, Germany
Abstract
In 2017, the German Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area derived a BAT value (biological tolerance value) for toluene [CAS NO. 108‐88‐3] in urine to characterize the internal exposure at the workplace. Available publications are described in detail.
The evaluation of the BAT value was based on the relationship between toluene uptake by inhalation at the level of the MAK value and the corresponding urinary excretion rate of unmetabolized toluene. An eight‐hour exposure to the present MAK value of 190 mg toluene/m3 correlated with a mean urinary toluene concentration of approximately 75 µg/l. Therefore, a BAT value of 75 µg toluene/l urine was evaluated. Sampling time is at the end of exposure or the end of the working shift.
