Hexavalent chromium, the most toxic form of chromium, is listed in the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) list of substances of very high concern. For several decades, INRS has been studying the biomonitoring evaluation of the chromium occupational exposure, through six studies in various industrial sectors. These studies have been used to characterize the airborne and biological exposure of employees exposed to chromium in the electroplating industry, chromium paints, refractory steel fabrication and thermal spraying.
This note describes biological and airborne data from these 6 studies, collected in companies from 1991 to 2016, completing knowledges of occupational exposure to chromium in various industrial sectors.
KEY WORDS: Biomonitoring, hexavalent chromium, occupational exposure, electroplating, chromium plating industry, thermal spraying, chromate painting, refractory steels
