Quantifying and modeling respirable dust and crystalline silica exposure in rice mills using the CART algorithm.

ABSTRACT: This study aimed to quantify respirable dust (RD) and respirable crystalline silica (RCS) exposure in rice mills of Western India, and, evaluating their association with rice varieties and operational activities using CART algorithm to handle missing data. Fifty RD samples were collected from breathing zones of workers across mills processing different rice varieties, post which corresponding RCS levels were quantified. Statistical analyses in Minitab and R, incorporating CART-imputed datasets, revealed that operational activities significantly influenced RD (22.55%) and RCS (10.59%) variability (p < 0.05), while rice varieties showed minimal impact. Dehusking operations exhibited highest RD and RCS concentrations with notable variability, while sieving operations reported lowest exposures

SUBMITTER: Saini M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12658173 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature